When Do Pols Pass Their Peak?

By SAM URETSKY

The web site of Merriam-Webster Unabridged, the people who publish the fat dictionary, has daily word quizzes. One of them, the vocabulary quiz, is quite popular, and asks about words that aren’t in particularly common use. Examples from a recent quiz included hegemony, gelid, harangue, gormandize, and heterodox. Points are given for getting the right answer in the shortest time. The average score is 2500 points, but scores also vary with age. The averages are:

Teens: 1860
20-somethings: 2270
30-somethings: 2490
40-somethings: 2660
50-somethings: 2790
60-somethings: 2920
70 and above: 2810

Evidently something happens at age 70 that leads to a drop. Still, Frank Bruni of the New York Times, wrote an excellent column “In Defense of the Gerontocracy: Maybe older is better. Just look at Nancy Pelosi.” Part of it reads: “Nancy Pelosi is 78. There was a lot of hand-wringing about that in the buildup to the midterms … How about some fresh energy and new blood?

“Thank heaven she swatted us away, because she smacks down Donald Trump more effectively than any other politician, and the reasons include her poise and steel, the kind forged by many battles over many years. They accrue as wrinkles do, with prolonged exposure to the elements.”

But, Mr. Bruni notes, the Democrats have never elected a first term president over the age of 52, The No. 2 and No. 3 Democrats in the House — Steny Hoyer and James Clyburn — are 79 and 78. As for the contenders for president, Bernie Sanders is 77, Joe Biden 76, Elizabeth Warren is 70 and Michael Bloomberg was born on Feb. 12, 1942. Cory Booker is 51, but he’s polling at 2%. Pete Buttigieg polls at 12%, is only 37, but he speaks seven languages: Norwegian, Spanish, Italian, Maltese, Arabic, Dari, and French. You can’t judge him by the Merriam-Webster quiz.

Anyway, Donald Trump was born in 1946, although he claims to be a very stable genius, whatever that means.

One of the most interesting studies of age related decline was published in PLOS One, March 18, 2019, titled “Age and cognitive decline in the UK Biobank.” One of the results was the measure of fluid intelligence, which measures abstract reasoning. A test of fluid intelligence might be to list as many uses of a frying pan as you can think of in two minutes. Scores were higher between the ages of 55 and 64 compared with subject under the age of 45, but then began dropping at 65. It’s not specified in the discussion, but 65 is a common retirement age, which implies a reduced level of social stimulation, one of the factors associated with maintenance of cognitive performance.

An August 2000 study in Military Medicine Oxford showed veterans have lower age related cognitive decline than the general population. There is another interesting association. In earlier studies, it appeared that veterans, particularly those who had been in combat or were prisoners of war, had more health problems than the general population, yet lived longer overall. This was attributed to preselection, the fact that persons accepted for military service were healthier than the general population. Persons rated 4-F (not qualified for military service) showed greater mental decline than those who were inducted. Hmmm ...

There’s a lot still to be learned about age-related cognitive decline. For one thing, the typical age-related decline can be indistinguishable from the early stages of neurologic problems, including Alzheimer’s Dementia and Parkinsonism. At the same time, there is the confounding variable resulting from repeatedly taking the tests. One researcher said “this proves that either the drug works or that anybody with enough practice can learn to spell ‘world’ backwards.”

There are a many other studies which relate age related decline. One study (The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging 2008) reported “Currently available epidemiological evidence suggested that an increase of saturated fatty acids (SFA) could have negative effects on cognitive functions, while increased polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) may be protective against cognitive decline.” This is important because the current advice to limit saturated fatty acids but increase polyunsaturates reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes and hypertension. Another study found that two fish meals a week was associated with slower cognitive decline, although further studies are needed.

None of which offers much help in deciding whom to vote for, Mr. Bruni also wrote: “It’s best to have plenty of younger politicians in the mix: It’s only from a multiplicity of perspectives that some problems — and some solutions — come clearly into view. And older generations need younger ones to reconnect them with their idealism.” But it still might be a good idea to watch out for politicians who eat too many hamburgers.

Sam Uretsky is a writer and pharmacist living in Louisville, Ky. Email sdu01@outlook.com.

From The Progressive Populist, January 1-15, 2020

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