Mental and Cognitive Health

Mental and Cognitive Health Library

Every article, presentation, spotlight, and news item we've tagged to Mental and Cognitive Health.

Showing 73–96 of 124

Peter Attia MDMar 2, 2026

#382 ‒ AMA #80: Longevity optimization through strength benchmarks, VO₂ max targets, nutrition principles, brain health, supplements, GLP-1 RAs, wearables, and more

Exercise emerges as the most protective intervention for brain health across the lifespan, with specific performance benchmarks in strength and aerobic capacity serving as measurable proxies for cognitive preservation and longevity. This positions physical capacity as a foundational biomarker that integrates multiple physiological systems rather than a secondary health outcome.

Peter Attia MDFeb 21, 2026

GLP-1 drugs fail to slow cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease

Recent evidence indicates GLP-1 receptor agonists do not slow cognitive decline in established Alzheimer's disease, despite theoretical mechanistic rationale and their known metabolic benefits. This finding redirects focus toward earlier intervention windows and prevention strategies rather than disease reversal in advanced stages.

Longevity.TechnologyFeb 13, 2026

Human brain aging decoded through living tissue

Researchers mapped how living human brain cells coordinate structural changes across the lifespan, revealing that brain aging is an active, regulated biological process rather than passive deterioration. This represents the first large-scale analysis of living tissue, enabling identification of molecular targets for intervention in age-related neurological decline.

Wiley Aging CellFeb 21, 2026

Epigenetic Clocks of Biological Aging and Risk of Incident Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia: The Women's Health Initiative Memory Study

Accelerated biological aging measured by the epigenetic clock AgeAccelGrim2 was associated with increased risk of mild cognitive impairment and dementia in 6,069 cognitively unimpaired women over 9.3 years of follow-up, independent of chronological age. This establishes epigenetic markers as measurable indicators of neurodegeneration risk.

SAGE Research on AgingFeb 23, 2026

Pathways to Falls Among Community-Dwelling Older Women: The Mediating Role of Cognitive Decline and Fear of Falling

Fear of falling and cognitive decline act as mediating pathways linking physical and psychological risk factors to fall incidence in older women living in community settings. This identifies actionable intervention points beyond treating isolated fall risk factors.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 30, 2026

PREMAZ expands early brain screening through Health is One

PREMAZ, a digital cognitive assessment tool, has partnered with Health is One to integrate early brain screening into everyday wellness services rather than clinical settings. The platform measures memory precision—the sharpness and reliability of recall—to detect subtle cognitive changes before decline becomes clinically apparent, shifting brain health assessment from reactive to preventive.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 6, 2026

Sleep rhythms and dementia risk link emerges

Chronic circadian disruption triggers structural changes in microglia, shifting them toward an inflammatory, stress-primed state that impairs their ability to clear neural debris. This mechanism may represent a primary driver of brain aging and dementia risk decades before cognitive symptoms emerge, with emerging research exploring whether stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles can intercept this inflammatory cascade.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 23, 2026

New findings link autophagy failure to early Alzheimer’s pathology

Impaired neuronal autophagy precedes amyloid-beta and tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease, suggesting that restoring cellular clearance mechanisms may address disease onset at a mechanistic level upstream of classical biomarkers. This positions autophagy dysfunction as a tractable target for intervention before irreversible neurodegeneration.

Nature - npj AgingApr 3, 2026

Psilocybin and human longevity

Psilocybin demonstrates measurable effects on lifespan and healthspan markers in preclinical models, operating through neuroplasticity pathways and stress-response modulation. The compound's capacity to alter consciousness-linked neural signaling raises questions about its role in longevity pathways previously associated with psychological resilience and systemic stress tolerance.

SAGE Research on AgingApr 18, 2026

Compounding Associations of Air Pollution and Heat Exposure With Cognitive Health Among Chinese Adults Aged 45+

Combined exposure to air pollution and heat accelerates cognitive decline in adults over 45, with compounding effects that exceed either exposure alone. This dual environmental stressor presents a significant mechanism of cognitive aging that demands attention in longevity planning.

Wiley Aging CellFeb 21, 2026

Acceleration of Lactate Uptake and Utilization Contributes to Neuroprotective Action of FGF21 Involved in Naturally Aging Mice

FGF21 enhances lactate uptake and utilization in the aging brain, protecting against neuroinflammation-driven cognitive decline. This mechanism reveals how metabolic efficiency at the cellular level directly influences neuronal resilience during aging.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 11, 2026

GLP-1 drugs hint at protection against neurodegeneration

GLP-1 receptor agonists show mechanistic promise against neurodegeneration through multiple pathways—improved mitochondrial function, enhanced cellular cleanup, and reduced inflammation—but human evidence remains preliminary, with mixed cognitive outcomes in early trials and inconsistent results across disease types.

Wiley Aging CellFeb 13, 2026

Host Oxidative Response Capacity Determines Longevity Outcomes of Microbial Interventions

Host genetic capacity to manage oxidative stress determines whether microbiota interventions extend or shorten lifespan. Individuals with genetic variants affecting redox buffering show accelerated aging when exposed to the same microbial signals that promote longevity in genetically robust hosts. This finding establishes oxidative stress management as the critical variable in microbiome-driven aging outcomes.

SAGE Research on AgingMar 9, 2026

Tai Chi and Qigong to Enhance Cognitive Function in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Evidence from a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Tai Chi and Qigong demonstrate measurable cognitive benefits in older adults through systematic review and meta-analysis, with effect sizes comparable to established interventions. This evidence supports non-pharmacological approaches to address age-related cognitive decline at the population level.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 16, 2026

Wearables may spot brain changes earlier

Continuous passive monitoring via consumer wearables can detect meaningful variability in cognitive and mood patterns over months, capturing environmental and physiological influences on brain function earlier than episodic clinical assessment. The strongest predictive signals—sleep quality, heart rate patterns, and environmental exposure—suggest brain health is fundamentally linked to systemic and environmental conditions rather than isolated neural function.

Nature AgingMar 31, 2026

Subcellular orchestration of microglial aging

Microglia—brain immune cells—reorganize their internal structure with age in ways that correlate with functional decline. Subcellular transcript localization patterns reveal how these cells alter their morphology during aging, providing a cellular mechanism underlying age-related cognitive and neurological changes.

Wiley Aging CellMar 7, 2026

The Immune‐Autonomic Interface in Aging: Baseline Immune Profile Shapes Cardiac Autonomic Response to Exercise

Baseline immune cell profiles in older adults predict how their heart rate variability responds to acute exercise stress. This immune-autonomic relationship reveals why individuals show heterogeneous physiological resilience during aging, informing personalized intervention strategies.

Nature - npj AgingMar 18, 2026

Avoidance of rejuvenation: a stress test for evolutionary theories of aging

Evolutionary theory predicts that organisms should invest in rejuvenation when it is energetically favorable, yet most do not. This paradox reveals fundamental constraints on aging that challenge current models of senescence and suggests the biological capacity for rejuvenation may be far more limited than previously assumed.

Longevity.TechnologyMar 5, 2026

Cognitive toolkit detects early Alzheimer’s signs

Researchers developed a Mandarin-language cognitive toolkit to detect early Alzheimer's signs in older Chinese Americans, addressing diagnostic gaps created by language and cultural bias in English-based assessments. The validated tests correlate with English measures and early blood-based biomarkers, enabling earlier intervention and broader research participation in underserved communities.

Longevity.TechnologyApr 14, 2026

Alzheimer’s risk gene reveals hidden bone decline in women

APOE4, a major Alzheimer's disease risk gene, compromises bone quality in women through disruption of osteocytes—the long-lived cells responsible for maintaining bone microarchitecture—despite normal appearance on standard imaging. This finding suggests bone deterioration may serve as an early, detectable signal of neurodegenerative risk before cognitive symptoms emerge.

Wiley Aging CellMar 15, 2026

Regulation of Lipid Dysmetabolism and Neuroinflammation Progression Linked With Alzheimer's Disease Through Modulation of Dgat2

Dgat2, an enzyme controlling triglyceride synthesis, emerges as a critical regulator linking amyloid pathology to lipid accumulation and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease. Suppressing Dgat2 in animal models restores cognitive function, synaptic integrity, sleep quality, and circadian rhythms while reducing neuroinflammatory signaling, indicating a conserved therapeutic target across species.

LT WireMar 19, 2026

ADDF launches new phase of $150m Alzheimer’s diagnostics accelerator

The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation has committed an additional $50 million to its Diagnostics Accelerator program, now totaling $150 million, to advance blood-based biomarkers, multi-marker panels, and AI-driven diagnostic tools for Alzheimer's disease. This investment targets earlier detection and disease monitoring to enable preventive interventions and combination therapies before irreversible neurodegeneration occurs.

Longevity.TechnologyFeb 18, 2026

Menopause linked to brain structure shifts

Post-menopausal women show measurable reductions in gray matter volume within memory and emotion-regulating brain regions, correlating with increased anxiety, depression, and sleep disruption. This structural shift represents a neuroendocrine transition point with downstream implications for cognitive resilience and cardiometabolic risk in aging.

Nature - npj AgingMar 12, 2026

Testing the redox theory of aging under parasitism

Parasitic infection accelerates oxidative stress and aging markers in host organisms, providing empirical support for redox-based aging mechanisms. This finding illuminates how chronic pathogenic burden compounds systemic dysfunction and accelerates cellular deterioration through reactive oxygen species accumulation.