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Washington University in St. Louis News & Information > News Topics > Culture & Living > Aging >
Aging and Mental Health
The following experts are available to discuss the major mental health issues that affect older Americans including dementia and depression.
| Faculty Experts: |
Showing Aging and Mental Health Experts 1 through 5 of 7.
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John Morris
Director and Principal Investigator, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Department of Neurology
John C. Morris, M.D., is the Harvey A. and Dorismae Hacker Friedman Distinguished Professor of Neurology, Professor of Pathology and Immunology and of Physical Therapy, and the Director of the Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Center for Aging, the Memory and Aging Project, and the Memory Diagnostic ...
Expertise: Alzheimer's disease, dementia, memory, aging, mild cognitive impairment
Media assistance: (314) 286-0122 / purdym@wustl.edu
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Nancy Morrow-Howell
Ralph and Muriel Pumphrey Professor of Social Work
Nancy Morrow-Howell studies many issues of concern to the elderly and their families, including adequacy of care for the dependent elderly, community care plans for the elderly, and use of mental health services. She is studying the health and mental health services needed and used by older adults ...
Expertise: elder care, gerontology, productive aging, depression
Direct contact: (314) 935-6762
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nancymh@gwbmail.wustl.edu
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Brian Carpenter
Assistant Professor of Psychology in Arts & Sciences
Carpenter's research focuses on the clinical psychology of aging, with an emphasis on family relationships in late life. Recent work explores the ways family members work together to make decisions regarding older adults. Other studies have examined whether adult children really know what their older ...
Expertise: Alzheimer's disease, attachment bonds, clinical psychology of aging, death and dying, dementia, depression, doctor-patient communication, …
Direct contact: (314) 935-8212
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bcarpenter@wustl.edu
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David M. Holtzman
Head of the Department of Neurology
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| Holtzman |
Holtzman is known as one of the leading experts in researching the underlying mechanisms that lead to Alzheimer's disease in an effort to improve diagnosis and treatment. In addition to seeing patients at the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center and the Memory Diagnostic Center, Holtzman leads a research ...
Expertise: Alzheimer's disease, dementia, neurology, molecular biology, monoclonal antibodies, amyloid plaques, perinatal stroke
Media assistance: (314) 286-0109 / reckessg@wustl.edu
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Martha Storandt
Professor of Psychology
Storandt's research deals with aging. A major goal is understanding the distinction between normal aging and Alzheimer's disease, especially the very early stages of the disease, and how each affects cognitive function. Most of her research involves administering standard and experimental psychometric ...
Expertise: aging, Alzheimer's disease
Direct contact: (314) 935-6508
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mstorand@artsci.wustl.edu
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| News Stories & Tip Sheets: |
Showing Aging and Mental Health Stories 1 through 3 of 45.
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Elderly driver safety
Experts discuss aging's impact on ability to drive, find other transportation
April 28,
2008 -- Ensuring that the elderly have access to transportation while preventing age-related driving impairments will be the focus of the eighth annual Friedman Conference on Aging, "Are We Licensed for Life? Transportation and Driving Issues in an Aging Society."
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The art of forgetfullness
Art & science of brain function is focus of WUSTL researchers' dialogue with artist Deborah Aschheim, March 20
March 6,
2008 --
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| Mike Venso/Laumeier Sculpture Park |
| Aschheim's "Earworm (Node)," contains LEDs, plastic, speakers, music and copper. |
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Artist Deborah Aschheim, known for her focus on interactive multi-sensory responses to neuroscience, memory and cognition, joins Washington University faculty from art, medicine, psychology and neuroscience for a free public panel discussion examining the relationship between Aschheim's art and brain science at 6 p.m. March 20 in Room 110, January Hall. The "Deborah Aschheim: Reconsider," exhibition, on display at Laumeier Sculpture Park, explores why we remember what we see and hear and why we forget, while offering a solution to curb the "forgetting curve."
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Telling it like it is
Dementia diagnosis brings relief, not depression
March 3,
2008 --
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| Emotional concerns are a serious consideration with the diagnosis of dementia. |
When it comes to a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, what you don't know may not kill you, but knowing the truth as soon as possible appears to be the better approach — one that may improve the emotional well-being of both patients and their caregivers, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.
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Showing Aging and Mental Health Stories 1 through 3 of 45.
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Study Details New Molecular Approach to Preventing Alzheimer's
The Washington Post
and 7 others
April 25,
2008 -- German researchers are reporting a new approach to the possible prevention of the molecular "debris" that's associated with the development of Alzheimer's disease.
WUSTL neurology professor James Galvin called the German research "a novel idea."
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Gut Check: Why Doctors Say Not All Fat Is Created Equal
The Wall Street Journal
and 2 others
April 15,
2008 -- The recent report that having a pot belly in your 40s roughly triples your risk of dementia in later life is just the tip of an ominous iceberg. WUSTL research on liposuction in which found no change in the women's cholesterol levels, triglycerides, insulin sensitivity or other health risks. "If they had lost that much fat by dieting, they would have substantially improved their metabolic profile, but they didn't," says Samuel Klein, director of WUSM's Center for Human Nutrition and the study's principal investigator.
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Researchers zero in on Alzheimer's plaque origin
Agence France Presse
and 13 others
April 10,
2008 -- WUSTL researchers have found that a key ingredient for the formation of Alzheimer's plaques is produced by a brain cell activity. WUSTL neurology professor and the study's first author John Cirrito comments.
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McCain works to answer age and health questions
Boston Globe
and 5 others
March 27,
2008 -- David Carr, clinical director of WUSTL's division of geriatrics and nutritional science, said the fact that McCain has gone five years without a melanoma recurrence is good news.
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Researchers Pinpoint Link Between Caloric Restriction and Longevity
CBC News (Canada)
and 7 others
Sept. 21,
2007 -- Harvard researchers report in the Sept. 21 issue of Cell that they have uncovered a molecular clue that seems to explain why cutting calories might lengthen your life.
It turns out that mitochondria guard against cell death, and two specific genes within the mitochondria actually carry out that task. Mitochondria are compartments within a cell that are dedicated to energy production, and their loss is thought to be a major cause of aging.
WUSTL molecular biology and pharmacology professor Shin-ichiro Imai comments on the Harvard study.
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Humor Hampered By Aging Brain?
CBSNews.com
and 1 others
Aug. 6,
2007 -- Age-related brain changes may make it harder for older adults to understand humor, a new study shows.
The study comes from WUSTL psychology graduate student Wingyun Mak and psychology professor Brian Carpenter.
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Joke comprehension may decrease with age, study at St. Louis university suggests
International Herald Tribune (France)
and 206 others
July 11,
2007 -- It's no laughing matter: a new study suggests older adults have a harder time getting jokes as they age.
The research indicates that because older adults may have greater difficulty with cognitive flexibility, abstract reasoning and short-term memory, they also have greater difficulty with tests of humor comprehension.
The research conducted by WUSTL graduate student Wingyun Mak and WUSTL psychology professor Brian Carpenter.
Findings were published earlier this month in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society.
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How Depression Weakens the Brain
The Wall Street Journal
July 3,
2007 -- In findings that highlight the importance of mood and stress to maintaining a healthy brain, researchers and psychiatrists say that a bout of depression may raise the risks of developing dementia later in life.
Article mentions research by WUSTL psychiatry professor Yvette Sheline. Her study showed that people with more days of depression untreated by antidepressants, at any point in their lives, exhibit an average 10% reduction in volume in the hippocampus, which may result in subtle changes to their memory capabilities, The study appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
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How to Talk About Aging
Newsweek
June 11,
2007 -- A recent survey by AARP found that nearly 70 percent of adult children have not talked to their parents about issues related to aging. Some children avoid this most intimate of conversations because they believe their parents don't want to talk. Others think they know what their parents want.
WUSTL psychology professor Brian Carpenter is one of the experts offering advice.
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Diabetes from Depression: Older adults face dual risk
Science News
May 15,
2007 -- Adults 65 and older who report depressive symptoms are 50 to 60 percent more likely to develop diabetes than are their peers, according to a new study at Northwestern University.
Treatment of depression is even helpful for adults who already have diabetes, according to a report in the April Diabetes Care by WUSTL psychiatry professor Patrick Lustman and his colleagues.
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Eldercare Choices Revive Sibling Fights
Associated Press Online
and 59 others
Jan. 17,
2007 -- With about 20 million Americans providing care for a parent or in-law, such family dramas often with financial questions lurking unsaid are playing out across the country. WUSTL psychology professor Brian Carpenter comments on old family dynamics.
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On the scales: Exercising helps dieters preserve bone strength
The New York Times
Jan. 2,
2007 -- When overweight people lose weight, they often lose bone mineral density as well, increasing their risk for osteoporosis. But new research led by medical professor and lead author Dennis Villareal suggests that losing weight with exercise rather than calorie restriction can preserve bone strength.
The results of the study appear in the Dec. 11 issue of The Archives of Internal Medicine.
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Diabetes, obesity can increase your Alzheimer's risk
CNN.com
Nov. 7,
2006 -- November is National Alzheimer's Disease month. CNN medical correspondent Judy Fortin talked about the illness with John Morris, director of WUSTL's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. He said besides old age, diabetes and obesity are also risk factors for developing Alzheimer's.
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Diagnosis: Dementia May Follow Higher Weight Loss in Aging
The New York Times
Sept. 19,
2006 -- Weight loss in people over 65 can be the result of normal aging, but new research suggests that it may also be an early indicator of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.
WUSTL neurology professor and senior author John Morris comments on the study that appears in the September issue of Archives of Neurology.
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Funding for Alzheimer's research is key, scientists say
Kansas City Star
and 17 others
July 5,
2006 -- Scientists who study Alzheimer's disease say they are on the brink of finding treatments to slow or stop it.
A few weeks ago, Congress voted to reduce funding for research on Alzheimer's disease.
WUSTL scientists commenting are neurology professor Anne Fagan Niven, neurology professor and chair David Holtzman, and Tom Meuser, director of education and rural outreach at WUSTL's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.
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The hidden dangers of belly fat
MSNBC.com
May 24,
2006 -- While we all know that excess pounds increase your risk of certain diseases, you may not realize that where you carry the weight makes a big difference. Researchers have found that abdominal fat could be even more hazardous to your health.
WUSTL nutrition expert Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition, explains why.
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Reducing your daily calories by 40%: The science behind 'starvation' diets
Wall Street Journal
and 3 others
Feb. 1,
2006 -- Earlier this month, one of the first human studies of calorie restriction showed that people on the strict diet had younger hearts than normal-weight people on a typical Western diet.
This new research shows that calorie-restriction diets -- which cut calories by as much as 40% of your normal intake -- may help you live a longer life.
WUSTL nutritional studies researcher Luigi Fontana comments.
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Cut calories for a younger heart
CBS News, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
and 115 others
Jan. 13,
2006 -- A very low calorie — that cut calories by as much as 40% of your normal intake — can help the heart age more slowly, according to researchers who released what they call the first-ever human study on the subject. Results showed that people on the strict diet had younger hearts than normal-weight people on a typical Western diet. WUSTL medical professor and lead author Luigi Fontana and colleague John Holloszy comment.
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Brain scan may spot Alzheimer's progression
ABC News, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
and 37 others
Nov. 16,
2005 -- Newly developed brain-scanning technology may help identify how Alzheimer's disease progresses and who is likely to get the disease, two new studies suggest.
In the second study, researchers used a combination of PIB/PET scans and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis to find markers that can predict Alzheimer's disease.
WUSTL neurology professor and lead researcher Anne Fagan Niven comments.
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Emotional toll is brewing
USA Today, Washington Post
and 1 others
Sept. 14,
2005 -- As many as one-third of people displaced by Hurricane Katrina could develop a stress-related disorder that needs professional help, according to projections by the federal agency coordinating the nation's mental health response. WUSTL psychiatry professor and trauma expert Carol North is one of the experts commenting.
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