HealthDay (4/15, Preidt) reports research indicates that “middle-aged and older people in poorer neighborhoods showed more brain shrinkage and faster mental decline than those in affluent neighborhoods.” Included in the study, which involved magnetic resonance imaging scanning, were “601 people in Wisconsin, average age of 59,” none of whom “had thinking or memory problems at the start of the study, but 69% had a family history of dementia.” By study end, “there was brain shrinkage in areas of the brain associated with dementia in people from the most disadvantaged neighborhoods, but no shrinkage in the other group,” the study revealed. The findings were published online in the journal Neurology. (SOURCE: APA Headlines)