These personality traits cause the brain to age, study finds

“Personality traits reflect relatively enduring patterns of thought and behavior, which can cumulatively affect individuals’ engagement throughout life,” says Tomiko Yoneda, lead author of the study and a doctor of psychology at the University of Victoria in Canada. To reach these conclusions, researchers reviewed the personalities of nearly 2,000 participants in the Rush Memory and Aging Project, a Chicago-area study that began in 1997. The scientists examined the role of three key character traits: conscientiousness, extroversion and neuroticism. These personality dimensions were then compared to how well people resisted cognitive decline later in life.

Worrying and ruminating: risky behaviors

First observation: we think (much) too much. In a time when our attention is over-demanded, where the future is uncertain, how can we not ruminate? The brain, even when asleep, continues to work. No wonder he’s tired. But some personalities are more at risk than others. Near CNN Healthwho reported the study, Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention Clinic at the Center for Brain Health at Florida Atlantic University’s Schmidt College of Medicine, detailed the different profiles most prone to suffer from nervous system disorders. Among the personality traits highlighted, we find the neuroticisma predisposition to feel negative emotions. According to Eysenck, a British psychologist known for his work on personality, this dimension of personality is intimately linked to anxiety and emotional lability.

Worse still, “ rumination and worry are linked to smaller brain volumes,” adds Dr. Isaacson, adding that “it’s not clear whether the stress/neuroinflammation pathway is causing this.” A biomarker doesn’t really exist for this, so it’s difficult to prove.” On the contrary, conscientious personalities and extroverts rejuvenate their brains. These beneficial character traits would help keep mild cognitive disorders at bay for longer.

The pointed character traits may contribute to an increased risk of suffering from brain degeneration. When we ruminate, worry and are prone to anxiety, the tissues and cells of our brain system deteriorate. “The accumulation of experiences across the lifespan may then contribute to susceptibility to particular diseases or disorders, such as mild cognitive impairment, or contribute to individual differences in the ability to resist neurologic changes related to ‘age’, or even cause Alzheimer’s disease.

Ultimately, is it ruminations that cause Alzheimer’s or Alzheimer’s that aggravates worry? To find out, we still have to wait. If this research marks a major advance in the treatment of dementia, further work is necessary to explore the origin of this correlation. Dr. Richard Isaacson assures that this link is already observed in clinical practice but suggests that it is complex, for the moment, to determine which is “the chicken or the egg”. To be continued, therefore. But when in doubt, let’s silence our mental ruminations!