Resilience, Interventions and Technology
The Mediterranean and Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) Diets: Associations with Working Memory and Psychological Distress Among Latinos
Presentation in a Themed Panel Susan Aguinaga
By 2060, the prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in Latinos is projected to increase by 832%. Evidence among primarily non-Latino Whites suggests that dietary patterns may reduce cognitive decline and improve psychosocial outcomes; however, this association between dietary patterns and health outcomes among Latinos is understudied. Methods: The purpose of the study was to examine relationships between two diet indices (i.e., Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) and Mediterranean (Med) diet), cognition, and psychological distress. This was a cross-sectional analysis of 61 Latinos (Mage=58.59 ± 8.66, 67% female) that completed the 2005 Food Frequency Questionnaire to assess and score adherence to two dietary patterns. Participants completed the word fluency test to assess working memory, and the NIH Toolbox was used to assess psychological distress (i.e., perceived stress, general life satisfaction, sadness, and loneliness). Multiple linear regressions were conducted to predict domains of cognition and psychological distress based on MIND diet and MedDiet adherence while controlling for age, sex, and education. Results: MIND diet scores significantly predicted verbal fluency scores (β = .301, p = .018), but not psychological distress. MedDiet adherence significantly predicted psychological distress such as perceived stress levels (β = -.437, p = .001), general life satisfaction (β = .411, p = .002), and sadness (β = -.335, p = .039), but not loneliness or verbal fluency. Discussion: Higher adherence to the MIND diet and MedDiet was associated with better working memory and psychological distress, respectively, among Latinos. Future intervention trials testing the effects of specific dietary patterns on health outcomes are warranted to help inform dietary recommendations for reducing risk of cognitive decline among Latinos.
Technologies to Support Cognitive Health View Digital Media
Presentation in a Themed Panel Wendy Rogers
Technology advances have the potential to support healthy aging but often technologies are not designed with consideration for the interests, capabilities, limitations, needs, and preferences of older adults. My research program is specifically oriented toward developing a fundamental understanding of aging and bringing that knowledge to bear on design issues important to technology design for the support of health, enjoyment, quality of life, and safety of everyday activities of older adults. I will provide examples of research focused on support for social engagement, healthcare activities, and cognitive function. I will discuss examples of how current technologies can support healthy living (e.g., apps, mobile devices, social networking, in-home assistive technologies) as well as how our team is developing new technologies (e.g., robotics, telepresence, digital voice assistants) to enable autonomy and independence for older adults. This research is funded by the National Institutes of Health through the National Institute on Aging and through the National Institute of Nursing Research; as well as by the Department of Health and Human Services through the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research as part of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers on Technologies to Support Aging-in-Place for People with Long-Term Disabilities (TechSAge) and the Center for Enhancing Neurocognitive Health, Abilities, Networks, and Community Engagement (ENHANCE). The goal of my presentation will be to illustrate our research to facilitate collaboration opportunities with conference attendees.
Cognitive Health in Later Life: Community-Based Interventions for Resilient Aging (Online Only) View Digital Media
Presentation in a Themed Panel George Rebok
Preventing cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease dementia is currently a high priority for researchers, clinicians, and policymakers. This presentation will critically examine the current evidence on the efficacy of community-based cognitive interventions for slowing cognitive declines, reducing dementia risk, and promoting resilient cognitive aging in diverse older adults. Although cognitive training has been identified by the National Academy of Sciences as one of three classes of intervention that has shown encouraging evidence for prevention of cognitive decline and dementia, there is as yet insufficient evidence to recommend specific cognitive training interventions to prevent these conditions. In this presentation we will review skill-based intervention approaches that target single and multiple cognitive abilities that are known to show significant age-related decline such as memory, reasoning, and speed of processing and that are important for everyday function. We will also discuss how to increase the access, affordability, usability, and sustainability of cognitive interventions in older adults with different cognitive ability profiles, educational and cultural backgrounds, and motivational levels. Novel approaches that explore the use of multi-component interventions that combine different intervention modalities will be considered.
How an Academic Medical Center is Utilizing Digital Health to Positively Impact our Aging Latino Community View Digital Media
Presentation in a Themed Panel Karl Kochendorfer
COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted our Latino and African American patient communities. UI Health, like most other health systems, had to rapidly deploy more intensive care unit (ICU) beds, COVID wards and telehealth solutions. It became immediately obvious that the digital divide within these communities was wider than within our white and Asian American patients. We set out to improve our data systems to better capture this digital divide and adjacent health disparities. With funding from a Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) grant and the ENGAGE-IL team at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), we mobilized our Home Visit Program to assist with technology deployment and adoption among our more vulnerable home bound patients. We piloted the use of easier cognitive screening instruments with the use of Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) within our Electronic Health Record (EHR). We are deploying multiple physical ‘Health Bar’ locations to assist with technology deployment, equipment configuration and general health technology assistance. We are looking forward to extending the work of our engineering colleagues at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and our clinical colleagues at the Mayo Clinic to predict Alzheimer’s disease earlier within our Latino community.
