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An active lifestyle and a healthy, fish-rich diet
are not only good for your heart, they may also help tackle the memory
loss associated with old age, two leading neuroscientists
said on
Wednesday.
As people live longer, finding ways of halting the
decline in mental agility
is becoming increasingly important, said Professor Ian Robertson,
director of the Institute of Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin.
"The biggest threat to being able to function well and properly is our
brains," he told journalists.
"There is very strong evidence, particularly in the over-50s, that the
degree to which you maintain your mental faculties depends on a handful of
quite simple environmental factors," he said.
Those who remained physically fit, avoided high stress levels and
enjoyed a rich and varied social life are better equipped to stay alert as
they age. Mental stimulation, learning new things and simply thinking
young also help.
A new survey compiled for the University of Kent
and the charity Age Concern showed ageism
was rife in Britain where people, on average, see
youth as ending at 49 and old age beginning at 65.
But Robertson said such attitudes were not helpful given the number of
80-year-olds who remain "sharp as pins."
"If you start to think of yourself as old when you are 60, which is no
longer justified, you will behave old," he said.
Research conducted by his Trinity College colleague
Professor Marina Lynch showed healthy eating was another key requirement
for staying on the ball
.
Lynch said new research showed fish oils may reduce the cell inflammation
that triggers a decline in memory.
(Agencies) |
周三，两位世界著名的神经科学家提出了自己的新观点，他们认为积极的生活方式、健康的饮食，特别是富含鱼类的饮食不仅对心脏有好处，还有助于解决由于衰老而导致的记忆力衰退。
随着人类的寿命越来越长，寻找能够抑制人类精神敏锐度下降的方法正变得越来越重要，爱尔兰都柏林三一学院神经科学协会负责人伊恩·罗伯逊教授说。
他告诉记者说：“对身体机能健康正常运转威胁最大的是我们的大脑。”
“有强有力的证据表明，一个人到底能够保持怎样的智力水平取决于一些非常简单的环境因素，对于那些过了50岁的人来说，更是如此。”他说。
那些身体健康、懂得为自己减压、享受多姿多彩的生活的人，当他们上了年纪之后，通常心智会更敏锐一些。智力上的刺激、学习新知识、保持年轻的心态同样也有益处。
一份为肯特大学和“老年问题”慈善机构进行的调查显示英国普遍存在对老年人的歧视。在英国人们普遍认为到49岁就不再年轻了，而65岁是步入老年的标志。
但是罗伯逊说这种看法对于那些80多岁思维还非常敏捷的人来说没有什么帮助。
“如果你60岁的时候就老觉得自己已经老了，这样你的一举一动就真的会像老人一样。尽管人们已经不再认为60岁是步入老年的标志。”
他的同事、三一学院教授玛莉娜·林奇进行的研究表明健康饮食是保持思维敏捷的另一个必要条件。
林奇说最新的研究结果显示鱼油能降低细胞炎症，而细胞炎症正是导致记忆力减退的原因之一。
（中国日报网站 薛晓文译） |
Updated: 2005-09-09 09:05
