Kenneth J. McLeod

By Kenneth J. McLeod and Carolyn Pierce

Part of the book: Cardiomyopathies

By Kenneth J. McLeod

Cognitive aging is a progressive condition leading to dementia, a condition which is now the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S., as well as being among the most expensive healthcare conditions to manage. With over 5 million affected in the U.S. alone, the annual costs to the Medicare/Medicaid system exceeds $200 billion, and with the rising age of the population, annual costs of dementia care are expected to exceed $500 billion by 2040. As there is no cure for dementia, a consensus has formed that a more pragmatic goal of research should be developing interventions capable of slowing or preventing cognitive aging. We propose that this is a readily achievable goal. Cognitive impairment is closely linked to cerebral perfusion, and cerebral perfusion is a function of cardiac output. In turn, cardiac output is completely dependent on venous return, which in the upright human, relies on adequate soleus muscle activity. As modern adults rarely squat, which is necessary for maintaining the soleus muscle, soleus insufficiency develops early in adulthood in most people. However, soleus muscle insufficiency can be reversed, resulting in improved cardiac output, cerebral perfusion, and the prevention of cognitive aging.

Part of the book: Cerebral and Cerebellar Cortex