Washington, Sep 14 (IANS) Elderly people who are anemic may suffer from impaired thinking, says a study.
Previous studies showed that age-related declines in the brain's so-called executive function - problem solving, planning, assessing dangers, following up on important activities - lead to declines in self-sufficiency.
Researchers led by Paulo Chaves at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine now say they have found a relationship between anemia and impaired thinking, reported science portal EurekAlert.
The researchers gave three psychological tests commonly used to evaluate executive function to 364 women, all between 70 and 80 years old.
"Our work supports the notion that mild anemia may be an independent risk factor for so-called executive-function impairment in older adults," Chaves said.