ELECTRIC STIMULATION TURNS BACK THE CLOCK

From electroconvulsive therapy (often called shock treatment) to deep brain stimulation, there is a long history of applying electrical currents to the brain to treat neurological and mental health issues. Now two studies suggest the benefits of this type of therapy might be more widespread.

In one experiment, researchers used electrodes embedded in a skullcap to deliver alternating current to certain regions of the brains of 42 adults ages 60 to 76. Doctors know that brain waves tend to fall out of sync with one another as we age. They also theorize that this disconnect is what slows the transfer of information from one part of the brain to another— the areas controlling reasoning and memory, for instance. To test this theory, the researchers tuned their electric currents to the natural oscillations of each subject’s brain waves to help get them back in sync. After the treatment, the older adults’ scores on tests of their working memory matched the scores of a comparison group of 20-somethings.

In another study, an electric current was used to stimulate the vagus nerve. As we get older, the branch of the nervous system that controls fight-orflight impulses gets more active, while the branch that affects “rest and digest” functions slows down. Together, these changes make us more prone to a wide variety of diseases. Shocking the vagus nerve, which helps control breathing, digestion, heart rate, blood pressure, and other bodily functions, rebalanced study participants’ nervous systems, helping them counteract the effects of aging.