Healthy elderly brains DO grow new cells — just as many as young adult brains

Many older people don’t seem as mentally sharp as young people, and it’s long been believed that brains stop making new cells as they age. Some research has even indicated that adults do not grow new neurons. Now, a new study in the journal Cell Stem Cell casts these ideas in serious doubt as researchers show elderly people are more intact both cognitively and emotionally than scientists once believed.

The researchers made their conclusions after examining the hippocampi taken from 28 people between the ages of 14 and 79 who had been healthy but died suddenly. Those involved were people who had not been drug users or cognitively impaired in any way, nor had they suffered from depression or been taking antidepressants for any reason – something that can affect new brain cell production.

This study broke ground as it marked the first time scientists studied the state of blood vessels and newly formed neurons throughout the human hippocampus so soon after the subjects passed away. The hippocampus serves many functions, one of which is creating new memories and emotional control. The brains came from donations, and all had been preserved with the same methods and came with detailed medical histories.