AARP Hearing Center

AARP has long been a leader in helping older Americans build healthy habits to support healthy brains. From suggesting lifestyle changes to help reduce the risk of cognitive decline to tackling the stigma surrounding Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, here’s what AARP is doing for you.
Staying Sharp. Through our online program Staying Sharp, you can build healthy habits for your brain, based on six pillars: eat right, be social, manage stress, engage your brain, exercise regularly and get good sleep. Research collaborations with Oregon Health & Science University and Massachusetts General Hospital are reporting exciting results about the impact of lifestyle behaviors among people using Staying Sharp. "Users who reported participation in specific healthy behaviors — like frequent cognitive stimulating activities, better sleep and regular exercise — show a lower likelihood of declines in cognitive performance," says Rachel Lazarus, who oversees Staying Sharp research. Much of Staying Sharp — including a monthly cognitive assessment — is available for free. AARP members get even more.
Eating right to reduce dementia risk. Older Black adults have higher than average dementia rates. AARP partnered with gospel singer and actress Tamela Mann and her husband David Mann on their YouTube cooking show "Mama Mann’s Kitchen," which has close to 600,000 subscribers. "My mother passed away from Alzheimer’s disease, which elevated the importance and need for us to take care of our brain health," says Tamela Mann, who wants to "educate the Black community ... to drive greater awareness on healthy foods to support our brain health." The episodes showcase Staying Sharp, where you can find easy-to-follow recipes that follow the Mediterranean diet.
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Research partnership. AARP, the Alzheimer’s Disease Data Initiative, and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington launched the Dementia Risk Reduction Project to identify how air pollution, depression, high blood pressure and other factors vary by state, and how these factors correlate with dementia risk. And AARP’s Global Council on Brain Health continues to develop and update reports on topics including the impact of physical activity, social engagement and more.
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