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The current ninety-year-olds have been preserved better than their predecessors

Copper newsLiving people whose age is approaching 100 years, on average, have preserved their mental alertness and physical shape better than their peers who lived a decade ago.

Experts from the University of Southern Denmark came to this conclusion after conducting a comparative study of the mental and physical condition of two groups of old people born in the early 20th century. The work was published in The Lancet (Christensen et al., Physical and cognitive functioning of people older than 90 years: a comparison of two Danish cohorts born 10 years apart).

The first group included 2,262 people born in 1905 and examined in 1998, aged 92-93 years. The second group consisted of 1,584 people born in 1915 and examined in 2010 at the age of 94-95 years. The study participants were tested for physical and cognitive status, including speech function, reaction speed, symptoms of depression, ability to cope with daily chores on their own, and so on.

It turned out that those born in 1915, despite the fact that at the time of the survey they were two years older, are much better than those born a decade earlier, perform tasks on intelligence. The number of those who scored the maximum amount of points among them turned out to be 10 percent more. In addition, although the physical condition of the participants in both groups differed slightly, it turned out that modern old people cope better with daily duties than those who were alive in 1998.

When summing up the results, it was taken into account that the average educational level of the group born in 1915 was higher than that of those born in 1905. In addition to intellectual stimulation, the authors believe that comparative improvement of living conditions, improved nutrition, healthcare, and so on also worked to maintain cognitive function in this group.

It is worth noting that the results of the survey of Danish elderly contradict the World Health Organization (WHO) report published in April 2012, according to which by 2030 the number of patients with senile dementia in the world will double.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru12.07.2013