The Ability Of Activity And Cognition In Old Mice To Predict Age Of Death
As we age, our bodies and minds undergo changes, influencing our overall health and how long we live. Scientists are keen to understand what factors can predict these outcomes, essentially looking for reliable indicators of “healthspan” – the period of life spent in good health.
Recent research explored this in older mice, examining several aspects of their well-being: how much they voluntarily ran, their general spontaneous movement, and their cognitive abilities, which include thinking and memory. The aim was to see if these measures could provide clues about how long the mice would live.
Interestingly, the study found that mice who ran more voluntarily tended to live longer. However, this single measure only explained a small portion of the variation in their lifespans. Similarly, individual tests of cognitive function alone weren’t very good at predicting how long a mouse would survive. This suggests that relying on one or two simple indicators might not give the full picture.
The real breakthrough came when the researchers combined several different measurements of activity and cognition into a single predictive model. This comprehensive approach was much more powerful, explaining a substantial portion of the lifespan in female mice and a notable amount in male mice. This finding highlights that a holistic view, considering multiple facets of physical and mental function, provides a far better estimation of an individual’s remaining healthy life.
The findings underscore the importance of daily movement and active living as key contributors to overall health and longevity. The study also hinted at an important connection between the quality of rest (sleep) and cognitive function, suggesting that these aspects of health are intertwined.