Brain health across the lifespan as a determinant of mental health in old age: Recommendations from the expert panel of the American Geriatric Psychiatric Association
Highlights • This position statement from the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) Brain Health Expert Panel emphasizes the critical role of brain health across the lifespan in shaping mental well-being during the later stages of life. • We advocate for a holistic approach that integrates medical, psychological, and social frameworks with culturally tailored interventions across the lifespan to promote brain health and overall mental well-being in later life across communities. • This position statement emphasizes the intrinsic link between brain health and mental health in old age, and urges health professionals, policymakers and society at large to prioritize comprehensive strategies that safeguard and promote Brain health from birth to old age in all communities. |
Summary
This position statement from the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) Brain Health Expert Panel emphasizes the critical role of brain health across the lifespan in shaping mental well-being during the later stages of life.
Evidence posits that maintaining optimal brain health early in life is crucial to preventing and managing disorders related to brain aging, such as dementia /cognitive decline, depression, stroke, and anxiety .
We advocate for a holistic approach that integrates medical, psychological, and social frameworks with culturally tailored interventions across the lifespan to promote brain health and overall mental well-being in older adults across communities.
Additionally, our statement underscores the importance of prevention, early detection, and intervention to identify cognitive decline, mood swings, and related mental illnesses.
Steps must also be taken to understand and address the needs of communities that traditionally have unequal access to preventive health information and services.
By implementing culturally relevant and adaptive evidence-based practices and advancing research in geriatric psychiatry, behavioral neurology, and geroscience, we can improve the quality of life for older adults who face the unique challenges of aging.
This position statement emphasizes the intrinsic link between brain health and mental health in aging, and urges health professionals, policymakers, and broader society to prioritize comprehensive strategies that safeguard and promote health. of the brain from birth to later years in all communities.
The AAGP Expert Panel aims to launch more activities in the coming months and years.
