Scientists have named the factor of memory retention in old age

Education, intellectually challenging work, and cognitive activity throughout life can help preserve language skills and working memory in old age. At the same time, the performance of cognitive tasks is also influenced by emotional intelligence and the nature of the information being processed. The results are published in the journal Neuropsychology.

On average, younger participants performed better on tasks, but older people with higher cognitive reserve demonstrated higher overall verbal fluency. Vocabulary turned out to be the strongest predictor of success, while the level of education alone did not provide an independent advantage.

It was easier for participants to choose words related to positive emotions than to negative ones. The tendency to suppress the external expression of feelings, on the contrary, was associated with the worst performance of an emotional task, regardless of age.

In the second study, 45 healthy people over the age of 65 completed tasks on working memory. They were shown faces, after which they were asked to take into account either the expression of emotions or the age of the person in the image. At the same time, the memory load was changing. A higher cognitive reserve was associated with greater accuracy of responses, regardless of the complexity and emotional content of the task. Happy facial expressions were processed faster and more accurately than angry ones, especially under high stress and in cases where emotion mattered for the correct response.

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Emotional intelligence did not increase accuracy, but it was related to the speed of reaction to emotional stimuli. Thus, cognitive reserve and emotional abilities could influence different components of task performance.

Studies have not tested the effectiveness of training and do not prove that the development of emotional intelligence or intellectual pursuits can reverse the already begun decline in cognitive functions. Both samples were small, so the conclusions need to be confirmed in larger and longer-term observations.

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Doctors have told us which exercises help reduce the risk of dementia.

In June, Maxim Sutormin, chief neurologist of the Central Federal District, said that the process of memory loss is reversible if the disorders are metabolic in nature. The expert noted that in neurodegeneration of the brain, neurologists often work together with psychiatrists, since they can prescribe drugs that can help the patient.