UCRH Director and Head of Rural Clinical School, Professor Vicki Flood is among the many authors of a new journal publication detailing an innovative trial, called Maintain Your Brain, which shows that an online lifestyle program can boost memory, reasoning, and processing speed in older adults.
The article, An online multidomain lifestyle intervention to prevent cognitive decline in at-risk older adults: a randomized controlled trial, has been published in the prestigious Nature.
The innovative trial was led by Professor Henry Brodaty AO, Co-Director of UNSW’s Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing, and is a potential game-changer in our attempt to prevent dementia.
Researchers tested an online program to help prevent dementia by improving lifestyle habits like exercise, diet, mental activities, and managing stress. They studied over 6,000 Australians aged 55-77 who were at risk of dementia. Participants who followed the personalized online coaching showed better thinking skills after three years compared to those who only received general information. This program could be used widely to help delay dementia in the community.
