Epidemiology of cognitive aging and resilience

Older Adults Cheering
EPIDEMIOLOGY OF COGNITIVE AGING AND RESILIENCE RESEARCH GROUP

from the brain and from the brain only arise our pleasures, joys, laughter, and jests as well as our sorrows, pains, griefs and tears...

Hippocrates, The Sacred Disease, C. 400 B.C.

Our Research

We aim to identify strategies to maintain memory and other cognitive abilities by identifying:

  • Risk factors that increase the chance of cognitive disorders like Alzheimer’s disease
  • Protective factors that build people’s resistance to cognitive decline (i.e., cognitive reserve) and increase the likelihood of healthy aging

Maintaining cognition throughout life is key to aging well

  • Populations around the world are growing older
  • Thus, age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease will become more common
  • Understanding factors that put people at risk of Alzheimer's disease provides the foundation for prevention initiatives
  • Developing strategies to build cognitive resilience will substantially reduce the impact of Alzheimer’s disease on individuals, families, and society
  • Our research will inform public health interventions and public policy targeted in early life to maximize health later in life

Learn more about our research projects

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News

Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Lab Meeting

Join us for our next Lab Meeting on Wednesday, November 30th where Paige will practice her honour's thesis proposal presentation and receive constructive peer-feedback. 

Join Carrie Shorey as she presents her work "Does psychological distress predict poorer cognitive function in refugee, immigrant, and non-immigrant older adults?". This presentation is a part of a panel discussion on Adversity, Health, and Aging in Marginalized Groups with other North American researchers at the American Public Health Associations 150th Annual Meeting and Expo.

This panel will provide unique insights into biopsychosocial pathways linking lifespan adversity exposure to aging related health outcomes in four diverse samples of aging LGBTQ+ and migrant adults in the US and Canada and provide potential targets for future prevention and policy efforts.