All posts tagged: brain health

Eating one egg a day linked to lower Alzheimer’s risk in older adults

Eating one egg a day linked to lower Alzheimer’s risk in older adults

Published by Jenni Sidey

Eggs have spent years in nutrition debates, praised for protein one moment and questioned for cholesterol the next. Now a large long-running study suggests they may also be tied to something else: a lower chance of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease later in life. Researchers at Loma Linda University Health found that adults 65 and older who ate eggs were less likely to receive an Alzheimer’s diagnosis than those who rarely or never ate them. The pattern held even after the team adjusted for diet, lifestyle, and a long list of health conditions. “Compared to never eating eggs, eating at least five eggs per week can decrease risk of Alzheimer’s,” said Joan Sabaté, MD, DrPH, a professor at Loma Linda University School of Public Health and the study’s principal investigator. The analysis drew on 39,498 participants from the Adventist Health Study-2 cohort who were linked with Medicare records between 2008 and 2020. Over an average follow-up of 15.3 years, 2,858 participants were clinically diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. That scale matters. So does the group itself. …

A Two-Week Internet Detox May Reduce Brain Age By 10 years

A Two-Week Internet Detox May Reduce Brain Age By 10 years

Published by Sam Flores

Some researchers think spending too much time on your phone might age your brain faster. One study found that “passive” scrolling may be linked to an increased dementia risk; another found that excessive use could lead to thinning of the cerebral cortex, which processes memories and handles decision-making. According to a 2025 PNAS study, though, those changes don’t have to be permanent. In their research, blocking mobile internet for two weeks appeared to result in better subjective well-being, mental health, and sustained attention, “as much as being 10 years younger”. What did the research involve? In this study, 467 participants used an app that turned their smartphones “dumb” again: in other words, it took away their internet access, but kept their ability to make and receive calls and texts. (While they used a specific app, you can enjoy a similar effect by disabling the mobile data and wi-fi on your device). The average age of the participants was 32. After the 14-day period, people’s screen time had almost halved (from 314 minutes a day to …

Best sleep trackers 2026: From Garmin to Oura

Best sleep trackers 2026: From Garmin to Oura

Published by Sam Flores

If you’re struggling with your sleep and you can’t work out why, a sleep tracker might help. On its own, it won’t solve your problems, but it can show patterns and provide useful information for doctors as part of a diagnosis. Basic sleep trackers collect data like sleep duration and time spent in each stage (light, deep and REM). More advanced models may track heart rate, stress levels and body temperature. Often, these stats are combined to calculate a sleep score and accompanying apps may suggest adjustments to your routine. We’ve reviewed dozens of fitness trackers and accessories for their sleep tracking capabilities, but only eight made the cut here. Prices range from £100 for Amazon own-brands to over £2,500 for an Eight Sleep pod system. Remember to factor in running costs and rolling subscription fees. The best sleep trackers of 2026: At a glance How we test sleep trackers Our experts test the trackers for at least two weeks. Some are purely for sleep, while others incorporate the technology as part of their broader …

What happens in your brain when you spend time in nature

What happens in your brain when you spend time in nature

Published by Jenni Sidey

A few minutes beside trees or water can shift the brain into a calmer state. That change is not just a feeling. It shows up in brain scans. A comprehensive review of 108 neuroimaging studies could provide additional insight into how our interaction with nature can create changes in our brains. The review was led by researchers from McGill University and Adolfo Ibáñez University in Chile and compiled data from neuroimaging studies including EEG, fMRI, MRI, and near-infrared spectroscopy. Their review produced the most complete picture of how our connections with nature can affect attention, stress, and emotional regulation. “We can intuitively understand that being in Nature is good for us, however, through neuroscience, we are able to provide a way to quantify and validate the way in which we think about Nature when it comes to health policy and the spaces we build,” stated Mar Estarellas, the study’s co-author and a research associate in McGill University’s Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry. How The Brain Works In Relation To Nature Across …

The long-term effects of repeated head trauma in football

The long-term effects of repeated head trauma in football

Published by Jenni Sidey

Scores on a memory test dropped as football experience rose, and the pattern held across thousands of former players. This trend was the focus of a large analysis of retired American football players aged 40 and older. Researchers compared men who played the sport with a control group that reported no prior history of repeated head trauma due to contact sports. Additionally, the control group reported no head trauma from military service or substance abuse. Overall, men who played football had poorer scores on memory tests and reported more cognitive problems. In addition, participants in the football group with longer careers and higher levels of competition experienced poorer cognitive performance than their peers. The current study uses data from the Head Impact & Trauma Surveillance Study, or HITSS. This is a nationwide study within the Brain Health Registry at the University of California, San Francisco. It has more than 100,000 participants. These participants will be followed into the future. Participants in HITSS completed a 90-minute battery of online questionnaires and cognitive assessments. (CREDIT: Shutterstock) Participants …

The Cognitive Impacts Of Menopause Revealed In New Study

The Cognitive Impacts Of Menopause Revealed In New Study

Published by Sam Flores

While menopause is a stage in every woman’s life, there is still so much we don’t know about the transitional period and the impacts it has on the body beyond the stereotypical symptoms such as hot flashes and mood swings. In fact, there are 62 possible symptoms of menopause, which range from histamine sensitivities to hair loss and currently, 1 in 7 menopausal women are on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) to mitigate these often debilitating symptoms, according to the pharmacy experts at Chemist 4 U. Now, Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian, a Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, and Christelle Langley, a Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cognitive Neuroscience, both from the University of Cambridge have delved into just how cognitively impactful menopause can be for women and produced an eye-opening study. The cognitive impacts of menopause The researchers analysed data from nearly 125,000 women from the UK Biobank (a large database containing genetic and health data from about 500,000 people). They placed participants into three groups: pre-menopausal, post-menopausal and post-menopausal with HRT. The average age of menopause was around 49 …

How Sugary Snacks Can Increase Dementia Risk

How Sugary Snacks Can Increase Dementia Risk

Published by Sam Flores

People are living longer these days, with the average life expectancy for people in the U.S. reaching 80.7 years for women and 74.1 for men, according to a scientific study published in JAMA. Yet unfortunately, for many people, their later years are not spent in good health. According to the same study, the U.S. has the largest gap between healthspan (the number of years one spends in good health) and lifespan (the number of years one lives). Dementia is one of the biggest threats to healthspan. According to the National Institutes of Health, researchers estimate that 42% of Americans over 55 will eventually develop dementia. Ready for some good news? You can control your brain health more than you probably think. A 2024 report published in The Lancet says that an estimated 45% of dementia cases are preventable through diet and lifestyle habits. Certainly, it’s our everyday habits that impact our health the most, including our brain health. There’s one common habit in particular that brain health experts we talked to said could be increasing …