Excessive Brain Activity Is Linked
to Shorter Life Span in New Study.
Published in 'Nature' magazine,
the study was conducted by
researchers at Harvard Medical School.
Researchers compared donated
brain tissue of those who lived
unusually long lives to those
who died in their 60s and 70s.
Between the two groups,
researchers found a difference
in the levels of a protein called REST.
REST is involved in obstructing
genes that ignite activity in the brain.
Those who lived longer lives
had a higher level of REST than
those who died before their mid 80s.
There's the idea that you want to keep your brain active in later life. [According to the study,] the thing that is super unexpected is ... limiting neural activity is a good thing in healthy aging. , Michael McConnell, Lieber Institute for Brain Development, via 'Greenwich Time'.
The lead study author said that
aging seems to somehow make
"the brain less efficient." This seems to
be "harmful ... reduc[ing] lifespan as a result.".
The study researchers are in
the beginning stages of testing the
implications of targeting REST with drugs