A test given to hundreds of thousands of students, including rock stars Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, nearly 60 years ago could hold the answers to whether a person will develop dementia.
Researchers at the Washington-based American Institutes for Research, which administered the test to some 440,000 high school students across the US in 1960, have been studying the teen's answers and believe they have found a link to student's who scored low on the test and Alzheimer's disease.
According to the Washington Post, researchers compared results for more than 85,000 testers with their 2012/2013 Medicare claims and expenditures and found that warning signs of memory loss may present itself as early as adolescence.
The study, published on September 7, looked at how students scored on 17 areas of cognitive ability such as clerical skills, language, math, abstract reasoning and visual and spatial prowess. Researchers say that those teenagers who scored lower on the test are more prone to developing Alzheimer's disease and related dementia in their 60s and early 70s.
Researchers believe a test given to students in 1960 can tell whether they will develop Alzheimer's disease. Students in a class are seen taking the test, called Project Talent
Engineer John McMillan works on the first machine built to process full paper sheets, instead of punch cards, to collect data from the Project Talent pool
The study found specifically that those who scored low on mechanical reasoning and memory for words had a higher risk of dementia later in life. Researchers found that low-scoring men were 17 per cent more likely to get dementia, while low-scoring women were 16 per cent more likely.
The test, called Project Talent, was administered to high school kids from 1,353 public and parochial schools across the country. It was funded by the US government.
The teens had to answer questions about academics and general knowledge as well as health, their home lives, personality traits and their aspirations.
According to the Post, one question quizzed students about the biblical figure Samson. Another asked students what two colors mixed together make chartreuse, while a third question asked students what a camper should do if he sees a garter snake.
Joan Levin, who attended Parkville Senior High School in Maryland, took the test when she was 15. The Post reports that it took two-and-a-half days to administer.
Levin, now 73, recently received her results and scored over 75 per cent with very high marks on vocabulary, abstract reading and verbal memory. She had low scores in clerical tasks and table reading.
Based on her performance, Levin is low-risk for dementia but told the Post that if she had done poorly on the test she would still want to know.
'I'm kind of a planner, and I look ahead,' she said. 'I'd want my daughter and her family to maybe have an idea of what to expect.'
Joan Levin, 73, recently found out her results and scored high on the test meaning she is low-risk for dementia
Rock stars Jim Morrison (left) and Janis Joplin (right) also took the tests as high schoolers
Cliff Jacobs, who attended a high school in New Jersey when he took test, said he would also want to know if he was at risk for dementia. Jacobs, 75, has not yet been told how he did.
'The statistical correlation is not one that will necessarily apply to you, but they can give you some probabilities,' he said. 'I guess basic human nature would be, 'Yeah, you'd probably want to know'.'
Joplin took the test as a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School in Port Arthur, Texas. Morrison took it as a junior at George Washington High School in Alexandria, Virginia.
Susan Lapham, director of Project Talent, told the Post that the hope is the test could help lower the number of Americans who develop dementia in the future.
According to the Alzheimer's Association, 5.7million people in the country currently have the disease. That number is expected to rise to 14million by 2050.
'If Project Talent can be for dementia what the Framingham study was for heart disease, it will make a difference in public health,' she said. 'It indicates that we should be designing interventions for kids in high school and maybe even earlier to maybe keep their brains active from a young age.'
Link hienalouca.comhttps://hienalouca.com/2018/09/23/new-study-finds-that-teens-who-scored-low-on-a-1960-test-have-higher-risk-of-dementia/
Main photo article A test given to hundreds of thousands of students, including rock stars Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, nearly 60 years ago could hold the answers to whether a person will develop dementia.
Researchers at the Washington-based American Institutes for Research, which administered the test to some...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/09/22/21/508C2CA100000578-0-image-a-83_1537646897403.jpg
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