It’s September and that’s back-to-school season. Even if you’re no longer in school, you may still reminisce about your prior days of sitting in a classroom, challenging your brain, and trying to remember and learn all that you could. As an older adult, challenging your brain is one of the most important factors for keeping your mind and memory sharp as you age. We know there are many modifiable factors within your control to help slow down your brain aging and lessen your risk of dementia. What’s also becoming clear is that as technology advances and brain imaging becomes more precise and detailed, we can better understand how the brain ages and monitor whether interventions are possible and treatments are effective. Let’s take a look at some recent research that highlights these brain imaging advances.

First, an overview of the technology advances. Through the use of artificial intelligence and more improved MRI imagery, we are now able to detect brain patterns and develop computer models that can elucidate what a healthy aging brain looks like versus a brain that’s experiencing a decline. There are now even companies beginning to commercialize this technology across the country (one such company is Brainkey) so that brain scans can be analyzed, and personalized recommendations can be made and tracked to determine how your brain responds and whether you can improve your brain health through lifestyle changes or other modifiable factors. Of course, before you consider the expense and hassle of a brain MRI, you may first want to consider whether your current habits and lifestyle are setting you up for successful brain aging. Recently, The New York Times, in collaboration with Dr. Jonathan Rosand of The Massachusetts General Hospital McCance Center for Brain Health, developed a list of 12 questions to ask yourself to help determine whether you’re setting yourself up for success or instead, elevating your risk of such brain diseases as dementia or depression. So sharpen that #2 pencil and take a look at the questions here. And click here to watch how learning a new language, even later in life, can slow down your brain aging and boost your brain skills as you get older.

Through advanced imagery, researchers have been able to examine the MRI brain scans of over 30,000 people, aged 40-70, to better understand the impact of pre-diabetes and diabetes on the brain as one gets older. It’s been well known that diabetes can be linked to brain health problems, including dementia, and this new research from the Karolinska Institute of Sweden and published in Diabetes Care goes a step further to examine the impact of diabetes on the aging brain. The MRI scans of those with poorly controlled Type 2 diabetes appeared on average to be 4 years older than would be usual for their chronological age and in comparison to the brains of those without diabetes. These prematurely aging brains could be an early warning sign for dementia. However, the good news is that researchers determined that engaging in a healthier lifestyle could counteract the effects of diabetes and thus slow down the brain aging process. So eat well, engage in regular exercise, stop smoking, and read more here and here.

And one more study about brain health to report, this one involving mice and examination of how the brain’s ability to clear out harmful waste (including the proteins linked to Alzheimer’s) can slow down as you get older. In this new study, published in Nature Aging, researchers at the University of Rochester were able to “combine advanced imaging and particle tracking techniques” to examine the glymphatic system of the brain, which uses cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) to wash away waste from the brain which may lead to brain aging and elevate your risk for dementia. The researchers were able to determine that dirty CSF flowed out of the brains of older mice 63% slower than the flow of such CSF in younger mice. However, with the use of a common drug to induce labor (prostaglandins) the researchers were able to increase the flow of dirty CFS from the brain, thereby lowering the risk of neurological problems as the mice aged. While this study needs corroboration in human trials, it once more demonstrates that as we are better able to see and watch what happens in the brain, we are likely to develop more treatments to proactively lower the risk for dementia and slow down the brain aging process. For more on this study, take a look here. And if you want some exposure to brain aging experts and what you can do to keep your brain sharp as you age, take a look at this free upcoming virtual program to be run next week by The Washington Post.