Men more likely to be forgetful in old age, study finds
A study of older people in their 70s and 80s has revealed that mild cognitive impairment marked by symptoms such as increasing forgetfulness was 50pc higher in men. Photo: Getty Images
Tuesday September 07 2010
IN the long, slow slide to oblivion called ageing, men go first, according to research. They are more likely than women to lose their memory and have difficulty thinking.
A study of older people in their 70s and 80s has revealed that mild cognitive impairment marked by symptoms such as increasing forgetfulness was 50pc higher in men.
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) involves a level of mental decline beyond that which can be explained by normal ageing. It is often associated with dementia and Alzheimer's disease later in life.
The onset of dementia is a slow process of mental derangement that strips sufferers of their memory, personality and, eventually, their humanity. It is a progressive, neuro-degenerative disorder that is incurable and irreversible.
Frightening
Some people subside gently into dementia without evident distress, but for others the experience of losing their mental faculties is confusing and -- in some cases -- frightening.
In the case of Alzheimer's, the condition is thought to be caused by the build-up of protein deposits in the brain -- called "plaques and tangles".
Scientists from the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, one of the premier research institutes in the US, tested the memory and thinking skills of more than 2,000 people aged 70 to 89.
They found that more than one in six (16pc) had mild cognitive impairment, one in 10 was suffering from dementia, and three-quarters had normal mental faculties. A total of 19pc of men were affected with MCI, compared with 14pc of women.
Lead researcher Dr Ronald Petersen said: "This is the first study conducted. . . to find a higher prevalence of MCI in men. The finding that the frequency of mild cognitive impairment is greater in men was unexpected, since the frequency of Alzheimer's disease is actually greater in women." (© Independent News Service)
- Jeremy Laurence in London
Irish Independent
