What Happens to Our Brains as We Age? – Webtekno

Aging is an inevitable process and in this process The brain also goes through many changes. So what exactly happens to our brains as they age?

Understanding the aging process of our brain, how to resist these changes so that we can take precautions It is important for.

The human brain weighs approximately 1.36 kg and contains approximately 100 billion neurons and trillions of synapses.

The brain changes more throughout life than any other part of the body. From birth to old age, The brain’s complex structures and functions are constantly changing, making and breaking connections.

In the first few years, the brain more than 1 million every second creates new neural connections. Brain volume increases fourfold during the preschool period and reaches 90% of adult volume by age 6.

The frontal lobes of the brain, which are responsible for executive functions, planning, such as working memory and impulse control performs functions. These areas are among the last areas of the brain to mature and may take until about age 35 to fully develop.

As we age, the brain, like the systems in our body, gradually weakens.

In this process mild memory lapses It is a normal part of aging. However, types of dementia such as Alzheimer’s are not part of the normal aging process. Memory changes associated with normal aging include:

• Difficulty learning something new: It may take longer to memorize new information.
• Multitasking: Slowing processing speed can make it difficult to schedule parallel tasks.
• Remembering names and numbers: Strategic memory begins to decline from the age of 20.

Shrinkage in regions involved in higher cognitive functions and the encoding of new memories, such as the frontal lobe and hippocampus, begins around age 60 or 70.

Thinning and decrease in connections caused by the decrease in synaptic connections on the outer surface of the brain, cognitive processing speed may contribute to its slowdown.

Made up of myelinated nerve fibers and between brain cells signal carrying task The white matter in the body shrinks as we age. This can cause processing speed to slow down and cognitive function to decrease.

The brain produces fewer chemical messengers as we age. such as dopamine, acetylcholine, serotonin and norepinephrine decrease in neurotransmitters, It may play a role in loss of cognition and memory and increased depression.

Scientists are conducting various research to understand the aging process of the brain.

In 2017, researchers from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York conducted a study on mice and found that stem cells in the hypothalamus of the brain controls the rate of aging revealed.

This number of stem cells It naturally decreases throughout life and accelerates aging. But reintroducing stem cells or the molecules they produce can slow or even reverse the signs of aging.

To protect brain health, exercising regularly, eating healthy, staying mentally active and maintaining social relationships We can take steps like: Even as our brain ages, it may be possible to keep it young and healthy.

Our other content that may interest you: