Aging Process Could Result in Inappropriate Social Behaviour by Gopalan on September 24, 2007 If you see a seemingly healthy

old man utter some socially unacceptable phrases, you must not get agitated. For it all could be the result of a biological phenomenon. Aging results in the atrophy of the frontal lobes of the brain and that in turn leaves one susceptible to uncouth or objectionable behaviour. As the brain shrinks in volume and weight during aging, thought and behaviour inhibitions are also shed, giving rise to serious problems. In a study appearing in the October issue of Current Directions in Psychological Science, University of Queensland psychologist, Bill von Hippel, reports that decreased inhibitory ability in late adulthood can lead to unintended prejudice, social inappropriateness, depression, and gambling problems. While social changes commonly occur with age, they are widely assumed a function of changes in preferences and values as people get older. Von Hippel argues that there may be more to the story and that some of the changes may be unintended and brought about by losses in executive control. It may be noted that the frontal lobes of the brain are the seat of executive functioning, they regulate thought and behavior. Hippel and his colleagues found that older white adults showed greater stereotyping toward African Americans than younger white adults did, despite being more motivated to control their prejudices. Von Hippel suggests that "because prejudice toward African Americans conflicts with prevailing egalitarian beliefs, older adults attempt to inhibit their racist feelings, but fail." Age-related inhibitory losses have also been implicated in social appropriateness. Von Hippel found that older adults were more likely than younger adults were to inquire about private issues (e.g. weight gain, family problems) in public settings. Furthermore, these age differences emerged even though older and younger adults both agreed that it is inappropriate to inquire about such issues in public settings. The older adults seemed to know the social rules but failed to follow them, which is consistent with diminished frontal lobe functioning. In late-onset depressed older adults, poor inhibition predicted increased rumination, which in turn predicted increased depression. This finding suggests that people who struggle to control their rumination begin to lose that battle as they age, the end result being the emergence of depression late in life. Von Hippel also found that a penchant for gambling can prove overwhelming for older adults, as those with poor executive functioning are particularly likely to have gambling problems. Interestingly, these problems are exacerbated in the afternoon, when older adults are less mentally alert. Older adults were more likely to get into an unnecessary argument and were also more likely to gamble all their money away later rather than earlier in the day. These findings suggest a possible avenue for intervention, by scheduling their important social activities

or gambling excursions earlier in the day. Source-Medindia GPL/J Ref: http://www.medindia.net/news/Aging-Process-Could-Result-in-Inappropriate-Social-Behaviour26848-1.htm Hormones and Stress alters behavior in Aging process By Bruce S. McEwen, Ph.D. on July 15, 2011 The adult brain is much more resilient and adaptable than previously believed, and adaptive structural plasticity involves growth and shrinkage of dendritic trees, turnover of synapses and limited amounts of neurogenesis in the forebrain, especially the dentate gyrus of the hippocampal formation. Our laboratory investigates how the brain undergoes changes in response to experiences, acting, in part, via the internal environment of the body in the form of circulating hormones. Hormones of the gonads and adrenal glands regulate neuronal structure (synapse formation, remodeling of dendrites, and neurogenesis) as well as neurochemistry in the adult brain via genomic and non-genomic receptors that work in concert with neurotransmitters, such as glutamate, as well as other mediators, such as brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), tissue plasminogen activator and endocannabinoids. Estrogens and androgens induce new synaptic connections in brain areas such as the hippocampus, a structure that is important in learning and memory. These same hormones also modulate damage produced in stroke, head trauma and seizures (glucocorticoids exacerbating damage; estrogens and androgens protecting against damage). Age-related changes in brain function and cognition are also likely to involve decreasing influences of gonadal hormones and increasing effects of adrenal glucocorticoids and other mediators such as inflammatory cytokines. We investigate stress effects upon brain centers involved in emotion and fear memory, such as amygdala, and brain regions involved in contextual and episodic learning and memory as well as mood control, such as the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. These brain regions all turn out to be sensitive to the effects of sex and stress hormones via both genomic and non-genomic receptors. Besides stressors that generate anxiety and learned helplessness, we also investigate the neural and behavioral consequences of circadian disruption such as arises from shift work, jet lag and sleep deprivation. In studying both stress and sex hormones as regulators of structural plasticity in the adult brain, it is necessary to consider sex differences and how they develop. Adverse early life experiences also have long-lasting effects on brain development, learning and memory, as well as predisposition towards disease. Although our laboratory does not do translational studies on human clinical populations, we collaborate with investigators who do such studies. Moreover, through national organizations that are concerned with human well being, we apply this knowledge to early childhood development and the effects of socioeconomic status on brain and body health. Stress Effects on Structure and Function of Hippocampus The hippocampus is a vulnerable and yet resilient brain region, and excitatory amino acids play an important role in normal plasticity as well as in damage produced by ischemia, seizures and head trauma. Stress also has important effects on the hippocampus via adrenal steroids and excitatory amino acids. We

found receptors for adrenal steroids in hippocampal neurons, and the actions of so-called "stress hormones" has been investigated with increasing intensity over the past several decades. The amygdala is another target of stress and shows structural plasticity in stress that is sometimes opposite to that seen in hippocampus - that is, when stress causes hippocampal neurons to retract it causes amygdala neurons to grow. Accompanying these changes are decreases in hippocampal-dependent memory functions and increases in fear and aggression that are related to the amygdala. There are also changes in neuronal excitability that are regulated acutely by adrenal steroids and chronically by repeated stress. The prefrontal cortex is another important target of chronic stress and also circadian disruption and shows atrophy of dendrites and loss of spines in the medial prefrontal cortex and expansion of dendrites (as in basolateral amygala) in the orbitofrontal region, along with disruption of cognitive flexibility. Aging is associated with a persistence of stress-induced remodeling of mPFC dendrites but with a failure of recovery after the stressor has ceased. Besides dendritic remodeling, stress also influences the replacement of neurons in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. In the adult brain, proliferation of neural stem cells continues in the subventricular zone, providing new neurons for the olfactory bulb and the neocortex, and in the dentate gyrus. Proliferating precursor cells reside in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus. The newly born cells express markers of immature neurons and extend axonal processes toward the CA3 region of the hippocampus. As they differentiate, these cells express mature neuronal markers and begin to migrate into the granule cell layer. Neurogenesis and survival are regulated positively by growth factors and certain hormones such as IGF-1 and estrogens and negatively by glucocorticoids, excitatory amino acids and opioids. Chronic restraint stress not only induces atrophy of apical dendrites in CA3 pyramidal neurons, it also suppresses neurogenesis. After 6 weeks it results in a 6% smaller dentate gyrus with 13% fewer granule neurons. Studies of fear conditioning show a specific suppression of neurogenesis associated with pairing of a tone and a shock. REF: http://www.rockefeller.edu/research/faculty/labheads/BruceMcEwen/

REFLECTION

Aging process is a physiological,psychological, and social change over a period of time. Aging is something we all do but understand very little. We all know the things that changes in an elderly client such as memory loss, wrinkles, muscles loss, balance changes,but no one really understands what aging is, what happens in our different parts of are body when we grow old and how can affects not only in our physical and mental status but also in our behaivior. In the two current trends that i have been researches i was been aware that the cause of undesirable words and some unacceptable behaivor of elderly people is not because of Alzheimer disease itself, although alzheimer is one factor that can affects changes in mental status but the etiology or the cause of changes in behaivior is because of the atropy happens in our brain particulary in our frontal lobes that process our executive functiong which regulates our thought and behavior, because of aging the brain shrink and decrease in size that affects the thought process that result to changes in behavior and arise different social problems such as rumination or repeatedly regurgitation of foods and utters different undesirable phrases and also depression. On the second current trends it was said that our hormones and stress affects our brain during aging process particularly the hipocampus which is the major component of the brains of humans and plays important roles in the consolidation of information from short-term memory to long-term memory and spatial navigation. In aging decreased of the supply of hormones Estrogens and androgens in the hipocampus changes in function and cognition. Besides stress also generates anxiety which affects ones circardian rhythm or our sleeping pattern. The prefrontal cortex is another important target of chronic stress and also circadian disruption and shows atrophy of dendrites and loss of spines in the medial prefrontal cortex and expansion of dendrites (as in basolateral amygala) in the orbitofrontal region, along with disruption of cognitive flexibility. Because of this new learning i can fully understand why some elders experienced difficulty and for us it is not a normal process but it is the effects of changes in our brain that cause weird behaivior in elderly, because of this it gain my understanding on how i can handle my patients with this kind of condition, we should have mant patience on them because they are not aware on their behavior and their brain is responsible for that.this new knowlegde can help me to fully understand the importance of healthy lifestyle that we should lessen our stress in our life because it may affects our mentally and can leads to unappropriate behaviors.

LA CONSOLACION UNIVERSITY PHILIPPINES CATMON, CITY OF MALOLOS ALLIED MEDICAL SCIENCES

Project In Elective II (Current trends in aging process and chronic illness)

SUBMMITTED TO: Mrs.Luz Al Hamoui, RN, MAN (Clinical Instructor)

SUBMITTED BY: Borlongan, Gia Pauline BSN-4 (August 2011)