For my premiere on Smartkit I would like to present a series of 5 logic puzzles

Sleep Apnea, which affects about 20 million Americans, results in memory loss, poor concentration, and chronic fatigue. (from an earlier Smartkit post)

Your brain is extremely fragile, and easily damaged by concussions and other forms of acceleration/deceleration injury. Back in January, I posted the story about Andre Waters

Ecstasy damages your brain

A new study, to be published in the journal Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental [Authors Keith Laws and Joy Kokkalis from the University of Hertfordshire] shows that the drug ecstasy [MDMA] moderate to markedly damages both

Note: The Mindfit software is currently available for purchase in the Smartkit Store here

Last year I posted about the powerfully negative effects chronic stress has on your memory and brain. Now, a new study

Researchers in Ireland have found that brain exercises in the form of rote memorization of poems, articles, and short stories leads to memory improvement.

From a recent update posted on the Medscape Neurology section:

Researchers at the American Academy of Neurology 59th Annual Meeting presented preliminary results from a study showing that long term exposure to secondhand smoke

If you are overweight, here’s some additional incentive to lose the pounds from a recent study in the journal Neurology that suggests there is a connection between obesity and brain power amongst the middle aged.

Here’s some new research that will come as a surprise to most neurologists: Moderate iron deficiency- without overt anemia- can impair learning and memory.

Importantly, the study found that iron supplementation can reverse the cognitive dysfunction.

The study was published in the March 2007 issue American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Marijuana

This bit really caught me by surprise: Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found that the active ingredient in marijuana (THC) appears to be quite effective in preventing the brain buildup of amyloid plaque. Amyloid is one of the main pathologic markers for Alzheimer’s disease.

A study conducted by researchers out of Stanford University

Is the brain like the muscles in your body? Can it be trained with cognitive exercises to improve mental agility and sharpness as you get older?

Quite a bit of research has come out lately indicating that the answer to this question is a resounding ‘Yes’.

Back in medical school, I remember a professor teaching us older patients tend to overreport memory problems and don’t really have much insight into the true status of their memory ability.

Now, a recent study published in the journal Neurology indicates that this may not be true.

Can college students pull an ‘All-Nighter’—staying up the entire night to cram for a test—and have their brains function close to normal the next day? The majority, of course, think so …

But several studies clearly show brain function takes a big hit after an all-nighter. Memory systems and

Recent research out of the Rush University Alzheimer’s Disease center seems to indicate that loneliness- in the form of emotional isolation- appears to be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease.

As per the news release from

A study which appears in the January issue of Neuropsychology indicates that a simple blood test- checking for uric acid levels- may help predict risk of cognitive impairment in older adults.

Patients with high-normal uric acid levels were found to have lower scores on tests of:

• mental processing speed
• verbal memory
• working memory