Frequent colds can affect the rate at which the brain ages and increase the risk of dementia and other cognitive-impairing diseases. This conclusion was made by scientists at Tulane University in New Orleans (USA).
Researchers studied aging male mice and found that repeated episodes of a cold or flu with mild inflammation impaired their mental performance and disrupted communication between neurons in their brains.
“The mice we studied can be compared to adults approaching middle age with intact cognitive abilities. However, with frequent colds with intermittent inflammation, they remembered less, and their neurons functioned worse, ”said Dr. Elizabeth Engler-Ciurazzilead author of the study.
Cold. © unsplash.com
The findings may have important implications for the standard of care for infectious diseases among the elderly and those at increased risk of dementia.
“More work needs to be done to understand why infections affect the brain so much and how to mitigate these effects. But the biggest takeaway from this study, in our opinion, is the importance of staying healthy and reducing the frequency of cold episodes,” said Dr. Engler-Chiurazzi.
Previously scientists at Harvard Medical School found that living in an area near a park, forest, or river that provides more time to spend in nature slows the progression of devastating neurological diseases such as dementia, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease.