BIG-HEADED with BIG BRAINS!!!

WHAT IS SELF-ESTEEM?
http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/emotion/self_esteem.html


DETAILS CONCERNING DR.SONIA LUPIEN'S RESEARCH
http://reporter-archive.mcgill.ca/Rep/r3016/lupien.html

DR. SONIA LUPIEN'S "STRESS, MEMORY, AND AGING" VIDEO

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Low self-esteem 'shrinks brain' By Pallab Ghosh BBC Science Correspondent Brain size was measured People with a low sense of self worth are more likely to suffer from memory loss as they get older, say researchers. The study, presented at a conference at the Royal Society in London, also found that the brains of these people were more likely to shrink compared with those who have a high sense of self esteem. Dr Sonia Lupien, of McGill University in Montreal surveyed 92 senior citizens over 15 years and studied their brain scans. She found that the brains of those with low self-worth were up to a fifth smaller than those who felt good about themselves. These people also performed worse in memory and learning tests. Retraining Dr Lupien believes that if those with a negative mind set were taught to change the way they think they could reverse their mental decline. He said: "This atrophy of the brain that we thought was irreversible is reversible - some data on animals and some data on humans shows that that if you enrich the environment if you change some factors this brain structure can come back to normal levels" Researchers are studying which psychological treatments work best. According to Dr Felicia Huppert of Cambridge University - the early signs are that fairly simple techniques can have an enormous impact: "There are interventions which talk about focusing on positive things in everyday life and savouring good moments even at times when life is difficult little tiny things may give you pleasure so there are skills involved in how to derive pleasure from the ordinary things in life". 'Reversed' According to Dr Lupien, the fear of memory loss may be a self fulfilling prophesy as anxiety leads to negative thinking which leads to mental impairment. "If you always think it's normal to lose something, then you will never work to increase it because doctors have always told you that. I'm saying that it is not normal. "So this might impact positvely on the public by saying that its possible to impact on increasing your memory performance and by saying that it is normal to have a fulfilling life, we may be able to increase self esteem among the general public - and prevent a lot of these deficits related to age". SEE ALSO: Attention drugs 'do not shrink brain' 08 Oct 02 | Health Chemical loss leads to brain decline 02 May 03 | Health Snails on trail of memory loss 24 Sep 01 | Health RELATED INTERNET LINKS: Royal Society The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites TOP HEALTH STORIES US reports first swine flu death Genes 'have key role in autism' Over-40s may benefit from aspirin | News feeds

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Confidence In Memory Performance Helps Older Adults Remember

ScienceDaily (Mar. 8, 2006) — Believing that you can retain a good memory even in your twilight years is the first step to achieving that goal. Those who believe they can control their memory are more likely to employ mnemonic strategies that help keep memory fit despite the march of time. These are the conclusions of a new Brandeis study published in the Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences.
See also:
Health & Medicine

* Healthy Aging
* Alzheimer's Research
* Menopause

Mind & Brain

* Memory
* Dementia
* Educational Psychology

Reference

* Memory bias
* Amnesia
* Memory
* Emotional detachment

The study demonstrates a link between actual cognitive functioning and a low sense of control, and examines whether the relationship between control beliefs and memory performance varies for young, middle-aged, and older adults and whether using mnemonic strategies influences memory performance.

"One's sense of control is both a precursor and a consequence of age-related losses in memory," says lead author Margie Lachman, professor of psychology and director of the Lifespan Lab at Brandeis University. "Our study shows that the more you believe there are things you can do to remember information, the more likely you will be to use effort and adaptive strategies and to allocate resources effectively, and the less you will worry about forgetting."

Funded by the National Institute on Aging, the study involved 335 adults, ages 21 to 83, who were asked to recall a list of 30 categorizable words, such as types of fruit and flowers. Middle-aged and older adults who perceived greater control over cognitive functioning were more likely to categorize the words and had better recall performance, Lachman notes.

"It's no surprise that age-related losses or lapses in memory can challenge our deeply embedded sense of control," says Lachman. "Thus, we find an increase with age in beliefs that memory declines are an inevitable, irreversible, and uncontrollable part of the aging process. These beliefs are detrimental because they are associated with distress, anxiety, and giving up without expending the effort or strategies needed to support memory."

In fact, even young people have problems with memory performance, though they typically chalk it up to distraction or other external factors. In contrast, older adults are more likely to judge their forgetfulness an inevitable fact of aging or even a warning sign of Alzheimer's disease, leading to anxiety and despair.

Those who don't use adaptive strategies for remembering often have the expectation that there is nothing they can do to improve memory. The study's results suggest that interventions that target conceptions of control over memory could be effective for improving strategy use and enhancing memory in middle and later adulthood.


Adapted from materials provided by Brandeis University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
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