Brain

How Exercise Lowers the Risk of Alzheimer’s by Changing Your Brain

Researchers analyzed brain changes linked to exercise to better understand how physical activity can slow the cognitive decline of Alzheimer’s

By Alice Park August 9, 2019

A New Alzheimer's Blood Test Proved 94% Accurate in Finding Brain Changes Related to the Disease

A blood-based test could identify Alzheimer’s disease earlier, which could give patients a better chance of slowing or eventually preventing the brain disease

By Alice Park August 1, 2019

Does Listening to Music Stimulate Creative Thinking, or Stifle It?

Listening to music while you work “significantly impairs” creativity. That was the conclusion of a study published earlier this year in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology that examined the effect of different types of background...

By Markham Heid July 16, 2019

It May Be Possible to Counter Some of the Genetic Risk of Alzheimer’s With These Lifestyle Changes

An encouraging study finds that there are things people can do — apart from taking drugs — that can lower the risk of dementia even among those with high risk genes

By Alice Park July 14, 2019

Despite the Headlines, We Don't Yet Know If Anticholinergic Drugs Contribute to Dementia Risk

A large study found a link between certain widely used anticholinergic drugs and a higher risk of dementia. But that doesn’t mean people should stop taking them

By Alice Park June 26, 2019

More Seniors Should Be Getting Brain Health Screenings, Experts Say

According to a 2019 Alzheimer's Association report

By Jamie Ducharme March 5, 2019

Doing Physical and Mental Exercise When You’re Younger May Help Ward Off Dementia

According to a new study

By Alice Park February 20, 2019

Having More Education Won't Slow the Effects of Dementia, New Study Says

The research contradicts previous thinking

By Alice Park February 6, 2019

Too Much Screen Time Can Have Lasting Impact on Kids

Young kids spend 2-3 hours a day in front of a screen, a new study says

By Alice Park January 28, 2019

Body Fat May Affect Your Brain Volume, Study Says

New research suggests a possible connection

By Alice Park January 9, 2019

These Are the Best Ways to Improve Your Memory

All day every day, your brain is bombarded with new information. Confronted with this tsunami of sensory and cerebral input, it’s no wonder much of it slips through your memory’s grasp. But if you feel...

By Markham Heid January 7, 2019

How a Healthy Heart Can Help Lower Risk of Dementia

What's good for the heart protects the brain, too

By Alice Park August 21, 2018

Drinking Too Much Alcohol (And Too Little) Is Linked to Dementia

Moderate drinking can have health benefits

By Alice Park August 1, 2018

There May Finally Be Something You Can Do to Lower Your Risk of Dementia

Doing this may help protect your brain

By Alice Park July 25, 2018

How Pregnancy May Affect the Risk of Alzheimer’s

Two new studies suggest that pregnancy may change how the brain ages

By Alice Park July 23, 2018

High Blood Pressure May Raise Alzheimer’s Risk

High blood pressure isn't just bad for the heart

By Alice Park July 11, 2018

Reading Books and Playing Games May Help Prevent Dementia: Study

Intellectual activities may protect the brain

By Alexandra Sifferlin May 30, 2018

How What You Eat May Affect Your Brain Size

Researchers say that diet can influence certain brain structures

By Alice Park May 16, 2018

A Genetic Test Could Help Predict the Right Antidepressant For You

The test can help guide doctors, according to a new study

May 7, 2018

Playing Youth Tackle Football Is Linked to Earlier Symptoms of Brain Disease

The latest look at CTE in football

By Sean Gregory April 30, 2018

How Smoking Pot May Hurt the Teenage Brain

Young people who used marijuana tended to have lower scores on memory tests

By Alice Park April 18, 2018

Taking Antidepressants During Pregnancy May Lead to Fetal Brain Changes

A new study looks at how antidepressants that women take while pregnant may affect their babies’ brains

By Alice Park April 9, 2018

This Study Could Explain Why Our Brains Perform Worse As We Age

We may have trouble remembering things and completing complex cognitive tasks as we get older, but it’s not because we have fewer brain cells

By Alice Park April 5, 2018

Why You Should Worry if You're Sleepy During the Day

A study explores how daytime drowsiness may be linked to the disease

By Alice Park March 12, 2018

Another Alzheimer’s Drug Has Failed. But Researchers Aren't Giving Up

Another study of a promising Alzheimer’s drug failed to slow brain problems

By Alice Park January 24, 2018

These Non-Drug Methods Could Help People With Alzheimer's Disease, Study Suggests

Even people with genes that put them at higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s can improve their thinking skills with these non-drug strategies

By Alice Park January 22, 2018

Bill Gates Invests $100 Million in Alzheimer’s Research

The Microsoft co-founder is lending his resources to improving treatments for the brain disorder

By Alice Park November 13, 2017

Young People's Blood Could Help Treat Alzheimer's

An unusual experiment in which people with Alzheimer’s were infused with plasma from young donors shows promise, but researchers say more work is needed

By Alice Park November 4, 2017

This Is How Much of Autism Is Genetic

Researchers have come up with a figure that they say is the most accurate accounting yet for how much of autism is due to genetic factors

By Alice Park September 26, 2017

Why Teenage Brains Are So Hard to Understand

It's not just you. Researchers are finding that teenage brains really are special

By Alexandra Sifferlin September 8, 2017

Resisting The Urge to Yawn Will Only Make It Worse

A new paper finds that yawning is indeed contagious—and that any attempts to stifle that yawn will only make the urge even stronger.

By Amanda MacMillan September 1, 2017

Doctors Say a Third of Dementia Cases Could be Prevented

Some effective ways of preventing dementia don’t involve high-tech or expensive strategies

By Alice Park July 20, 2017

Keep Your Heart Healthy Now and Your Brain Will Benefit Later

People who take good care of their hearts in their twenties have better brain health by the time they reach middle age, according to a new study. In the report, published in the journal Neurology,...

By Alexandra Sifferlin July 19, 2017

What Type of Exercise Is Best for the Brain?

Exercise is just as good for the brain as it is for the body, a growing body of research is showing. And one kind in particular—aerobic exercise—appears to be king. “Back in the day, the...

By Alexandra Sifferlin July 5, 2017

Farming Is The Next Frontier in Luxury Retail

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute June 19, 2017

You Asked: How Can I Use More of My Brain?

It’s a myth that humans only use 10% of their brains. “That idea is not only inaccurate, it doesn’t make any sense,” says Earl Miller, a professor of neuroscience at the Picower Institute for Learning...

By Markham Heid June 14, 2017

The Death Rate from Alzheimer’s Disease Is Climbing

The death rate from Alzheimer’s is rising, according to the latest government study, and more families are caring for loved ones with the disease

By Alice Park May 25, 2017

The Simple Reason Exercise Enhances Your Brain

Evidence keeps mounting that exercise is good for the brain. It can lower a person’s risk for Alzheimer’s disease and may even slow brain aging by about 10 years. Now, new research helps illuminate how,...

By Alexandra Sifferlin April 26, 2017

Lead Exposure In Childhood May Lower IQ

Being exposed to high levels of lead as a child can cause health consequences that last well into adulthood, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association—including a lower...

By Alexandra Sifferlin March 28, 2017

If You Want to Avoid Dementia, Here's What To Know

You've heard the saying before: “use it or lose it.” Studies show that people who utilize their brains more—by furthering their education, learning a new language or musical instrument or keeping a rich network of...

By Alice Park February 24, 2017

Why ADHD Isn’t Due to Bad Parenting

It’s listed in the manual of psychiatric disorders as a validated mental health condition, yet there’s a lingering sense that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), especially among children, is in part due to poor parenting...

By Alice Park February 16, 2017

Doctors Are Getting Closer to Predicting Autism Earlier

New research may give worried parents hope

By Alice Park February 15, 2017

Doctors May Be Able to Predict Autism Risk Much Earlier

About one in 68 children born in the U.S. are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, the developmental disorder that affects a number of brain functions—most notably children’s ability to socialize and communicate. Because the first...

By Alice Park February 15, 2017

Why Autism Affects Boys More than Girls

Researchers have identified one reason why the developmental disorder is more common among boys than among girls

By Alice Park February 8, 2017

How Virtual Reality Can Make You Less Afraid To Die

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute January 26, 2017

Why Stress Makes You More Likely to Have a Heart Attack

It's all in your brain

By Mandy Oaklander January 11, 2017

Researchers Find 102 Genes Linked to Autism in One of the Largest Studies of Its Kind to Date

Genetic Mutations In Father’s Sperm Can Predict Children’s Autism Risk

Biogen Explains How Its Alzheimer’s Drug Went From Poor to Promising

How Biogen's Discontinued Alzheimer’s Drug Got A Second Life