Hombre, when analyzing the results of studies like this, it is im****tant
not
to over-generalize. The bilingual subjects in the study spoke English,
presumably as a second language, along with five central and eastern
European languages. There may be a common thread shared among the
speakers
of these languages, not accounted for in the study. There are no western
Romance languages included, neither native American, African, Farsi, etc.
The study only deals with patients who "presented cognitive complaints"
also. It doesn't investigate those without cognitive complaints, who may
be
the majority of the population.
The study and its conclusions fail to account for a number of factors
likely
overlooked. One cannot really eliminate the effects of "cultural
differences, immigration, formal education, employment and gender" using
computer software. We call this a "pilot study" because it shows
introductory results only. Being able to see the possible flaws in
studies
of this type without jumping to conclusions is part of "critical
thinking",
something that may also slow the onset of dementia.
Among Usenet informants, I would like to see the results compared between
those who make original contributions and copy/paste artists. ;^)
Saúde,
Earle
----
"Carlos de Gante" <laparanoia@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:1169025328.059507.113560@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
scientists prove that the lifelong use of two languages delay
degeneration of brain function, in other words dementia, by four years
compared to monolingual people.
Scientific researches have been examining for a long time how lifestyle
items such as physical activity, education and social engagement may
build the "cognitive reserve" and a long-lasting healthy brain in later
years of life.
The cognitive reserve means enhanced neural plasticity, compensatory
use of alternative brain regions, and enriched brain vasculature, which
fight against the onset of dementia symptoms (brain degeneration).
Now, the team at the Rotman Research Institute at the Baycrest Research
Centre for Aging and the Brain, adds bilingualism to these factors.
"We are pretty dazzled by the results," says principal investigator Dr.
Ellen Bialystok, Professor of Psychology at York University and
Associate Scientist at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest.
"Our study found that speaking two languages throughout one's life
appears to be associated with a delay in the onset of symptoms of
dementia by four years compared to those who speak one language."
The same team had shown that bilingualism enhances attention and
cognitive control in both children and older adults. Now, they examined
the diagnostic records of 184 patients of Baycrest's Sam and Ida Ross
Memory Clinic between 2002 and 2005, which presented cognitive
complaints.
The study group compassed 91 monolingual persons and 93 bilingual ones,
the other language spoken besides English being Polish, Yiddish,
German, Romanian and Hungarian. 132 patients met criteria for probable
Alzheimer's (the most common form of dementia, which is highly
genetic); the other 52 presented other dementias.
The researchers used data of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)
scores (a measure of general cognitive functioning), years of education
and occupation. The MMSE scores were the same for the monolingual and
bilingual groups at their initial visit to the clinic, pointing
comparable levels of impairment.
The team discovered that the mean age of onset of dementia symptoms in
the monolingual group was 71.4 years, while the bilingual group was
75.5 years, and this difference persisted even after putting on
equation the bias determined by cultural differences, immigration,
formal education, employment and gender.
"There are no pharmacological interventions that are this dramatic,"
says Dr. Freedman, who is Head of the Division of Neurology, and
Director of the Memory Clinic at Baycrest.
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Speaking-At-Least-Two-Languages-Impedes-Brain-Degeneration-44312.shtml
"El hombre es tantas veces hombre cuanto es el número de lenguas que
ha aprendido"
- Carlos I de España
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