Neuroplasticity: How the Brain Changes at Any Age

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Hello everybody, welcome to a new episode of the Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show. I'm Lisa Skinner, your host. I am so appreciative of you being here with me today to listen to this, a really fascinating topic. Called neuroplasticity. Some of you may have heard of it, some of you may have not, but it is truly a fascinating thing within our brains that gives us the ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections across all ages. And it's, uh, driven by experience, training, and our environment. So why would this even matter? Why do— why should you care? Well, because it enhances our ability to learn and remember things. It aids recovery after an injury, and it supports adapting to new skills and to new environments. Neuroplasticity includes structural changes or new connections, and functional changes, which are how networks in our brain activate during tasks. There are 4 different types of plasticity. There's experience-dependent, there's use-dependent, also synonymous with the adage "use it or lose it," There's injury-induced plasticity, and there's pharmacologically modulated plasticity. Evidence from our daily lives include: musical training changes the cortical maps in our brain, learning to juggle induces rapid brain remodeling, Meditation has been shown to affect attention networks in our brain and gray matter. Language learning reshapes bilateral language networks in our brains. The lifespan perspective of neuroplasticity will start with infancy and childhood. That includes rapid plasticity and critical periods. In adulthood, it's slower but robust with deliberate practice. In aging, plasticity continues to persist, mitigated by mental activity, physical activity, sleep, and social engagement. So some of the factors that promote healthy plasticity are deliberate repetitive practice, adequate sleep for consolidation, nutrition, especially omega-3s. Physical exercise has shown to increase and support our circulation. Cognitive challenges and novelty, stress management to avoid chronic stress. And some of the practical applications for stimulating neuroplasticity are deliberate practice, spaced repetition, and learning fundamentals. Rehabilitation: targeted repetitive therapy, Mental health therapies that leverage plasticity. Habit changes— make the small habit changes and keep your routines fairly consistent. Education— you're using your multi-sensory functions, and that promotes active learning. Now, some of the common misconceptions of plasticity is that— and that's why I'm sharing this with you today, because one of the misconceptions is that plasticity is only exclusive to children. But it is scientifically shown to persist, but it does vary with age. It is not unlimited. It doesn't end with childhood. It continues on throughout our lifespan. And that relearning is very possible with targeted practice. So that's what neuroplasticity— and I think the, the main point we want to take away from what I just shared with you is that our brains continue to expand and learn throughout our entire lives, which was kind of negated before. So we can continue to learn and stimulate our brains and create new neurons well into our 70s, 80s, and beyond. And that's really the main takeaway from the information that I'm sharing with you on this topic. Now, I do have some news you can use for you today, and that is that not all depression predicts dementia. It has been shown a correlation between depression and a risk of developing dementia. So what we know now is that 6 specific symptoms can predict it, even 23 years later. Appetite changes, no risk. Loss of confidence, 50% higher risk. That's based on a study done by Lancet Psychiatry in December of 2025, very recently, 5,811 adults were studied over a 23-year period. 30 symptoms were assessed. 10% of those 5,811 adults, 10% developed dementia. Now, the 6 predictable factors were loss of confidence, gave them a 50% higher risk, difficulty coping 50% higher, unable to feel affection increases the risk, always nervous increases the risk, poor concentration increases the risk, and dissatisfied with ta— tasks. Now, here are 5 that don't increase the risk. And I find this really surprising. Having suicidal ideations or thoughts, appetite changes, physical complaints, guilt, and feeling hopelessness. So why do these matter? That it really is based on executive dysfunction. And not our moods. There are many cognitive symptoms that are actually disguised as depression, like the loss of confidence, difficulty coping, can't feel affection, always nervous, poor concentration. The difference? Mood depression Sadness and sleep, no elevated risk. So I'm going to give you a couple examples. Here's a real case scenario. 58-year-old has been depressed for 2 years. He's lost confidence. He has work struggles. He can't solve problems easily. He was on 3 failed antidepressants. He was tested for executive dysfunction and frontotemporal changes. Now, this gentleman was diagnosed with dementia, not depression, but it was delayed for 2 years. So why do these things get missed by physicians? Because doctors will ask questions like, "Are you feeling sad?" "Have you lost interest in anything?" "Are you sleeping poorly?" But they should ask, "Have you noticed that your problem-solving abilities have changed? If so, in what ways?" "Are you less confident than you were before?" before? In what ways are you less confident? And if you notice that your concentration is different from before, are you less able to concentrate? So what changes have you noticed? If depression has cognitive symptoms, ask for an evaluation. Don't accept, "Oh, this is definitely depression," or "This is just depression," without being tested for it, especially if you're between the ages of 45 and 65 with no prior depression, a gradual onset of depression, and meds that just don't work for depression. So here's a good timeline to follow. Midlife symptoms predict dementia, but 20 to 30 years later. Treatment approaches can be mood symptoms and emotional work, cognitive symptoms, executive training, and neuro workup. So the bottom line is that cognitive symptoms in midlife matter more than our moods. Pay attention to the symptom type. Does your depression include cognitive changes? And that will be a lot of help to your physician in differentiating between a cognitive situation developing and depression. So hopefully that was helpful. This was brought to us by Dr. Gomi, Lisa Gomi. Um, somebody commented that loss of confidence, trouble coping, and poor connection aren't just emotional. They can be early signs of cognitive decline that show up decades before dementia. So this is really an important thing to pay attention to and to monitor and to discuss with your physician. Could make a huge difference for you later in life. So that will wrap up this episode for the Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show. I'm Lisa Skinner, your host. Thanks again for being here and have a great rest of your week. Try to stay happy. Always, and healthy always. And I will be back next week with another episode of the Truth, Lies Alzheimer's Show. I'm Lisa Skinner, your host. Take good care for now. Bye-bye.

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