Alzheimer's / Dementia Super-Agers and Cognitive Longevity 7/2/2024 | By Terri L. Jones With medical advances keeping people alive longer, scientists are on a mission to keep their brains functioning just as long. A group of seniors called “super-agers” may help provide a key to achieving this cognitive longevity. What are super-agers? If your guess is some kind of superhero, you’re not far off! This exclusive group of seniors are 80 and older, but they have the astounding memory of those 20 to 30 years younger. Most importantly, their existence proves that cognitive decline is not an inescapable part of aging. One example is 96-year-old Vernon Smith. While many people his age and even younger are lounging and watching TV, Smith is still writing and researching about economic sciences for approximately 10 hours a day. On the faculty of both the business and law schools at Chapman University in Southern California, this nonagenarian also coauthors books and lectures around the country. When asked about retirement, Smith replied, “Why would I do that?” Because his work is his passion, there’s nothing he’d rather be doing! Super-agers you may know include 93-year-old William Shatner, who flew into space at age 90; Warren Buffett, American businessman, investor, and philanthropist; and marketing guru Philip Kotler. The spunky Dr. Ruth Westheimer, who was appointed New York’s Loneliness Ambassador in 2023, was dubbed at super-ager. She died on July 12, 2024, at the age of 96. There is no data on how many super-agers are out there, but one scientist estimates less than 10% of those over 80 fall into this category. The differentiators For a little more than a decade, scientists have been studying this cohort of older adults to try to determine what accounts for their superior memories. A study of 119 octogenarians in Spain, published in the Journal of Neuroscience in June 2024, found that the brains of super-agers were different from that of their peers. The hippocampus and entorhinal cortex, which are important for memory, had more volume, or less atrophy, than the average octogenarian. Plus, the connectivity between regions in the front of the brain, which are involved in cognition, was better preserved. The characteristics While we’d all love a foolproof strategy for becoming a super-ager, so far, a magic bullet doesn’t exist. It may even be that super-agers simply have “some sort of lucky predisposition or some resistance mechanism in the brain that’s on the molecular level that we don’t understand yet,” Dr. Tessa Harrison told The New York Times. Harrison is an assistant project scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, and collaborated on a super-ager study in Chicago. Four elements common to super-agers Even though science hasn’t come up with a super-aging formula yet, four lifestyle characteristics seem to be prevalent within this group. 1. Strong social relationships One trait that pops up again and again in super-agers is the strength and high level of trust in their relationships. “Super-agers’ social networks are not necessarily larger, but the quality of their relationships seems to be more positive and stronger,” explains University of Michigan neuropsychologist Amanda Maher. And their brains back up this social prowess with four to five times the number of neurons responsible for social processing and awareness. 2. Physically active While super-agers don’t report doing more exercise than their peers, they do participate in more rigorous activity such as stair climbing and gardening. Plus, many did more exercise in middle age. As a result, they tend to have greater mobility, agility, balance, and speed than others their age. 3. Challenge themselves These memory savants also push themselves to master new skills like playing a musical instrument or speaking a new language and don’t let a difficult task frustrate or intimidate them. Dr. Bradford Dickerson, a neurologist at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital, explains, “They may approach these tasks as a challenge they can succeed at, in contrast to typical older adults who may give up.” Related: ‘Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age’ Excerpt from “SuperAging: Getting Older Without Getting Old“ 4. Occasional indulgences Whether it’s a glass of wine or a dessert after dinner, super-agers believe in indulging themselves now and again. And those occasional indulgences may serve them well. In fact, moderate drinkers have been found to be 23% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s and other cognitive impairments. But the key is moderation (a maximum of one drink per day for women, two drinks for men). Overdoing alcohol can have the opposite effect on your brain! To maintain cognitive function as you age, experts also recommend managing your blood pressure and blood sugar, maintaining a healthy diet, controlling anxiety and stress, addressing vision and hearing problems, and getting a good night’s sleep. With these strategies, you might or might not become a super-ager, but you definitely will be giving your brain the best shot at good health. Read More Terri L. Jones Terri L. Jones has been writing educational and informative topics for the senior industry for over 10 years, and is a frequent and longtime contributor to Seniors Guide.