27.... the new 50

I stumbled upon this article from the "Neurobiology of Aging, April 2009" recently that stated people begin to suffer mental decline starting at age 27.

I was stunned and sad all at the same time. I am not prepared for middle age yet. According to the article you will experience a dulling of certain mental functions such as "measures of abstract reasoning, mental speed, and puzzle solving".

So is it just a sharp decline after that? I hope not. 27 is so young. However if you look at things in another way your late twenties represents a crucial age in development. For instance professional sport athletes are normally in their peak at this time. Also in the music industry many famous artists join the "27 Club" either by their own hand or other circumstances. You rarely hear of a new music sensation breaking into the scene in their thirties. It seems your late twenties is really when things happen. Perhaps our ancestors were fortunate because of their short lifespan as 27 was actually considered late in the game generations ago.

Anyway, there is still a silver lining so don't feel old yet. The article does point out that as you age "performance on tests of vocabulary and general knowledge [keep] improving". So that's a good thing. We just become old people with knowledge that no one wants to listen to. Hmm? Why is that familiar? Damn it if only I could remember?

Anyway, you must excuse me now for I think I will read a book. Something has to get some exercise around here and I suppose it should be my brain.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090402/hl_nm/us_mental_decline