10/20/2016 – Do brain-training exercises really work?
A battle has been brewing over whether brain training really works, leaving consumers stuck in the middle, scratching their heads.
Read the full article at CNN.
10/19/2016 – Cutting calories may dial back ‘metabolic syndrome’ in older adults
For overweight and obese older men and women, adding calorie restriction to a resistance training schedule improves at least some metabolic markers, according to a new study.
Read the full article at Reuters.
10/18/2016 – Five faculty members elected to National Academy of Medicine
Among the elected Stanford faculty members are Center on Longevity director Laura Carstensen, and deputy director Thomas Rando.
Read the full article at Stanford Medicine.
10/14/2016 – The Future of Retirement Communities: Walkable and Urban
Few people in America walk to work. The vast majority of us drive to the supermarket. But more older folks these days are looking for a community where they can enjoy a full life without a car.
Read the full article at the New York Times.
10/11/2016 – Let’s retire retirement
At a recent BlackRock Retirement Roundtable, Stanford’s Laura Carstensen, Encore’s Marc Freedman and Brookings’ Josh Gotbaum discussed the different ways that our current concept of “retirement” is outmoded.
Read the full article at BlackRock Blog.
10/10/2016 – What Aging Americans Mean For The U.S.
By 2050, 20 percent of the country will be older than 65, and The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson writes that the greying of our country will impact every facet of our political and economic lives. Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson speaks with Thompson about the implications.
Listen now at Here and Now (WBUR).
10/6/2016 – Advice for Boomer Bosses on Millennial Employees, and Vice Versa
Americans are now living an average of 30 years longer than a century ago, according to research from the Stanford Center on Longevity.
While this trend actually worries many baby boomers and Gen Xers who wonder if and how they’ll be able to ever afford retirement, millennials have emerged as the most “optimistic generation” when it comes to embracing the new possibilities afforded by this increased longevity, according to a recent study by insurance company Allianz Life.
Read the full article at Fox News.
10/6/2016 – 401(k) Plan Shortcomings Failing As Retirement Income Program
The current “retirement plan” of choice – 401(k) plans – really aren’t true retirement income plans. While they can be great for accumulating savings, most 401(k) plans don’t do much to help older workers decide if they have enough money to retire, or how to convert their hard-earned savings into a retirement paycheck.
Read the full article by Center on Longevity Research Scholar Steve Vernon.
Do “Brain-Training” Programs Work?
How could two teams of scientists examine the same literature and come to conflicting “consensus” views about the effectiveness of brain training?
The disagreement might result from different standards used when evaluating the evidence. To date, the field has lacked a comprehensive review of the brain-training literature, one that examines both the quantity and the quality of the evidence according to a well-defined set of best practices. This article provides such a review.
Read the article at Psychological Science in the Public Interest</em>.
The Weak Evidence Behind Brain-Training Games
Seven psychologists reviewed every single scientific paper put forward to support these products—and found them wanting.
Read the full article at The Atlantic.