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Health October 2017

A Healthy Age

Kicked Out but Stayed In

By Carrie Luger Slayback

Older art students had “better health, fewer doctor visits, less medication usage, more positive responses on mental health measures and more involvement in overall activities…maintaining independence…reducing risk factors for long term care.”

I was kicked out of community college life drawing class even though I listened to lectures, completed all assignments, and turned in homework promptly. The California state legislature decided to spend resources only on full-time students, not seniors who enrolled in Life Drawing 1A over and over.

As we bid a last good-bye to our drawing teacher, she said, “I’m sorry to see you go. You seniors are more serious learners than the kids, and besides, there’s statistical support for the health-giving aspects of retiree art-education.”

Let's see what she was talking about.

’ll start with “Your Brain on Art,” from December, 2015’s Watercolor magazine, quoting PLOS ONE, an international, peer-reviewed journal. German researchers took MRIs and other tests of two groups, aged 62-70. One group had ten weeks of hands-on art, and the other studied art appreciation.

End-session testing showed “a significant improvement in psychological resilience” in the hands-on art students “whereas the art appreciation students did not improve.” Researchers postulated that “motor skills and problem solving involved with actual creation” led to “effective integration between regions of the brain,…which process introspection, self-monitoring, memory and emotional recognition in others,” thus reversing deterioration of regions of the brain known to decline with age.

Dr. Gene Cohen’s oft-quoted “Creativity and Aging” study cites final results which revealed “strikingly positive differences between those involved in participatory art programs” verses those not. Older art students had “better health, fewer doctor visits, less medication usage, more positive responses on mental health measures and more involvement in overall activities…maintaining independence…reducing risk factors for long term care.” YIKES, take art!

Sciencedaily.com, May, 2011, “Musical Experience Offsets Some Aging Effects,” quotes Nina Kraus who advocates for lifelong musical training. She says, “when compared to their non-musician counterparts – musicians 45 to 65 years old excel in auditory memory and the ability to hear speech in noisy environments.” Seems that musical training can reduce age-related hearing loss.

Dr. Norman Weinberger of University of California, Irvine studies neurobiology and memory. He is quoted in NPR’s December, 2012, “Never Too Late to Learn an Instrument,” Weinberger says, “Pioneering research on the auditory system and the brain, [indicates that,] while it’s harder for the mature brain to learn an instrument, it's not impossible…A lot of people believe the brain isn't very plastic after puberty. In fact, the brain maintains its ability to change.” Scott Hawkins, a piano teacher, also quoted by npr.org, says “for those who are willing to practice …there are real payoffs. Playing music is great mental exercise and can keep brain cells alive that would otherwise wither and die. And it's fun.”

After leaving community college classes, I landed in watercolor class at my local senior center. Preferring drawing to painting, I struggle alongside Jan, Gail, Nancy Judy, Mary. We’re learning color theory, and mastering watercolor techniques. A strong benefit, not mentioned in research: Our weekly class bonds us and forges strong connections to our teacher, Theresa. We senior center art students support each other. As soon as one session ends, we register for the next six weeks, staying connected, expanding art talents – and remaining healthier!

 

Carrie Luger Slayback an award winning teacher and champion marathoner, has many health and fitness articles to her credit. Contact her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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