Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have used an AI tool to analyze brain images from 70-year-olds, revealing that poor vascular health can make the brain appear older. Factors like inflammation and high blood sugar levels are linked to older-looking brains, while healthy lifestyles are associated with younger-looking brains. These findings were published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Every year, over 20,000 people in Sweden are diagnosed with dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease making up about two-thirds of these cases. Various risk and health factors influence the speed of brain ageing.

“New Alzheimer’s drugs won’t work for everyone with dementia, so we’re studying ways to boost the brain’s resilience against ageing,” says Anna Marseglia, the study’s lead author and researcher at Karolinska Institutet.

AI-Derived Brain Age

The study involved 739 cognitively healthy 70-year-olds from Gothenburg’s H70 cohort in Sweden. Using MRI scans and an AI-based algorithm, the researchers estimated the biological age of their brains.

“The algorithm is accurate, robust, and easy to use,” says Eric Westman, principal investigator and professor of Neurogeriatrics. “It needs further evaluation but may eventually be useful in clinical settings, such as dementia investigations.”

Factors Influencing Brain Age

The study collected blood samples alongside brain scans to measure lipids, glucose, and inflammation. Participants also completed cognitive tests and provided data on lifestyle factors like exercise and medical conditions.

The AI tool estimated the average brain age to be 71 years. By comparing participants’ biological brain age to their actual age, researchers found that diabetes, stroke, small vessel disease in the brain, and inflammation were linked to older-looking brains. In contrast, a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise was linked to younger-looking brains.

“Keeping your blood vessels healthy is important for protecting your brain. For example, maintaining stable blood glucose levels can help prevent your brain from ageing prematurely,” says Anna Marseglia.

Future Research on Sex Differences

The study also found differences between men and women in terms of factors linked to brain age. Researchers plan to investigate how social health, including social engagement, connectedness, and support, along with sleep and stress, influence brain resilience, particularly focusing on women’s health factors.

“Next year, we’ll start a study to understand the impact of social health on brain resilience, especially in middle and older age,” adds Marseglia.

A study found a small but statistically significant benefit of white and pink noise on task performance among children and college-age young adults with ADHD.

Colour noises represent different frequencies and volumes along the sound spectrum, each with its distinct characteristics and effects on the brain. Just as white light includes all the colours of the rainbow, white noise contains all noise frequencies and sounds like static. Pink and brown noise are similar but with a higher proportion of low frequencies; they may sound like rain or a waterfall. 

As clinical understanding of ADHD continues to broaden, interest in identifying novel, low-cost supports for those diagnosed with the condition has grown. One such support that has recently sparked great interest is the potential use of colour noise exposure — including white, pink and brown noise — to enhance focused performance during attention-demanding tasks.

“Although outcomes are much improved with current treatments, ADHD still can dramatically increase the risk of serious and complex long-term health outcomes because treatments are only partially effective, and adherence is difficult,” said Joel Nigg, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry in the OHSU School of Medicine, co-director of the OHSU Center for Mental Health Innovation and lead author of the study. “It is critical that we continue to investigate complementary and alternative supports for those living with ADHD.

“Our priority is identifying new and improved tools to empower each individual to live their healthiest and most productive life, as well as providing evidence-based guidance on popular ideas in the public domain such as white or brown noise.”

Exploring colour noise

The systematic review and meta-analysis included 13 studies with 335 participants. It found that white or pink noise improved cognitive performance for children and young adults with ADHD or significant ADHD symptoms. In contrast, white or pink noise slightly reduced cognitive performance for individuals without ADHD or with regular attention. 

Researchers say these results point to a possible low-cost, low-risk intervention that may benefit youths with ADHD. Nigg said that leveraging white and pink noise is relatively safe, easy to implement, and accessible. Additionally, colour noise therapies can be used inexpensively at home and with other interventions, like medications, with relatively low concern for side effects.

At the same time, however, using colour noise to enhance attention is not without hazard, Nigg cautioned. Hearing damage is a significant risk if noise volumes are not carefully monitored, and other studies have shown that youth tend to use headphones at excessive volumes for different activities. The effects of frequent use on children’s attention development are also unknown.

With these unknowns, creating clinical guidelines would require additional data, Nigg said. Looking ahead, researchers will need to prioritize additional studies that compare white or pink noise with other environmental stimulation — such as brighter light or other kinds of noise — and test the effect range across task types and with varying types and durations of auditory stimulation.

Additionally, study populations should be expanded and diversified to ensure accurate data is collected on race, ethnicity, and other characteristics that may influence effects, Nigg said, noting that the lack of a large, diverse sample population was a significant limitation of the study.  

“While additional research is needed to translate the findings to clinical practices, these initial results should be seen as encouraging,” Nigg said. “The results should stimulate further work to clarify who can benefit and what dosages and amounts are safe and appropriate. Supportive interventions continue to be needed for ADHD, which affects millions of kids and adolescents around the world.”

In a groundbreaking study, researchers at the University of South Australia have discovered that podcasts can significantly enhance health knowledge, increase exercise frequency, and promote healthier eating habits.

After reviewing the results of 38 studies, researchers found that people’s engagement with health-related podcasts was generally high. This suggests that podcasts could serve as an effective medium for delivering health information and promoting behaviour change interventions.

Nielsen data indicates that podcast popularity has risen by 16% since last year, solidifying this on-demand media in the daily lives of 9.6 million Australians.

UniSA researcher Beth Robins says the findings highlight the potential of podcasts promoting positive health behaviours.

“Health and wellbeing podcasts have the unique ability to convey a wide range of health topics to a variety of listeners, but in a very accessible way,” Robins says.

“Not only are podcasts typically chatty and conversational – which makes them easy to listen to and understand – but they’re also available at the touch of a button, so they’re extremely convenient, portable, and can be listened to at any time of the day.”

The study found that the most common motivations for listening to a health podcast was to gain information, better understand mental health issues, and to seek entertainment.

UniSA researcher Dr Ben Singh says the high engagement with health podcasts presents an advantage over other health interventions for sharing important public health messages.

“Our study is the first to review the evidence about health podcasts for the general population,” Dr Singh says.

“From this study, we know that podcasts are highly valued for their authenticity and reliability and their impactful, experience-focussed, and narrative-driven content.

“They’re also valued for their ability to be consumed at the user’s pace and in a setting that suits them – whether that’s while relaxing at home or walking the dog – and this aligns with increasing consumer demand for health resources that are both informative and adaptable to individual lifestyles.

“While more research is warranted, podcasts are clearly a highly engaging, well-received resource that can positively impact health behaviours and outcomes. It’s certainly a watch this space.”