Publisher Health

20 hours agoShareSaveShannen HeadleyWest MidlandsShareSaveBBCA secondary school in Cheshire has been shut to deep clean the building after high levels of pupil sickness. Congleton High School told parents and staff it contacted the UK Health Security Agency and infection control experts due to a “number of flu-like cases”. A letter said the school would be shut for two days from Wednesday while the deep clean takes place. It said parents would get an update on Thursday to confirm whether school will reopen on Friday. The UKHSA’s Health Protection Team advised that pupils or staff who are vulnerable or immunosuppressed should seek health advice, and state that they “may have been exposed to influenza or another respiratory infection”.The letter said: “As we are currently unable to open, we have implemented a plan for the effective continuation of learning. “Work will be set in accordance with the usual timetable, where staff are well enough to do so. “A range of learning activities will be set… any additional teacher support in lessons will take place via Teams message or school email.”The school said students were expected to engage in remote learning on both days if they are well enough to do so. Staff would be carrying out “safe and well checks” as appropriate, it added. Congleton High School said it made the decision to close on Wednesday and Thursday due to a number of cases of flu-like illness in the school this week and following discussions with the UKHSA’s Health Protection Team and Infection Control Team.Cheshire East Council said it was liaising with the school to understand the impact on staffing, but at this stage most absences related to pupils.Contingency plans were in place to maintain safe staffing levels, it stated.”We know this is a worrying time for parents, but flu and similar illnesses are common during the winter months,” said professor Rod Thomson, director of population health at the authority.Vaccination was the most effective way to protect children and the wider community, said the professor, adding that if your child was unwell, to please keep them at home and follow NHS guidance.Read more Cheshire stories from the BBC and follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.Related internet links

A new JNeurosci study led by Tian-Ming Gao and colleagues at Southern Medical University examined how adenosine triphosphate (ATP) signaling might influence depression and anxiety in male mice. ATP is best known as the cell’s main source of energy, but it also acts as a chemical messenger that helps neurons communicate. Because healthy communication between brain cells is essential for regulating emotions, the researchers focused their work on the hippocampus, a region involved in memory, stress responses, and the development of depressive symptoms.
To better understand how ATP functions in this area, the team examined signaling patterns in the hippocampus and how they changed under stress. The hippocampus has long been associated with mood disorders, in part because it is sensitive to prolonged stress and is involved in shaping emotional behavior. disruptions in this region can affect how the brain processes stress, which may set the stage for depression or anxiety.
Stress, ATP Loss, and the Role of Connexin 43
The researchers found that male mice prone to developing depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors after long-term stress had lower levels of ATP. These mice also produced less of a key protein required for ATP release (connexin 43). Connexin 43 forms channels that allow ATP to move between certain cells, making it an important part of how the brain maintains healthy energy and signaling levels.
To test whether reduced ATP release contributed to mood-related symptoms, the team genetically decreased or removed connexin 43 in cells that normally release ATP. This experiment was done in another group of mice that had not been exposed to prolonged stress. Even without a stressful environment, lowering connexin 43 triggered depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors and reduced ATP levels. This finding suggested that disruptions in ATP release alone could influence emotional behavior.
When the researchers restored connexin 43 in the hippocampus of stressed mice, ATP levels returned to normal and the animals showed noticeable improvements in their behavior. This recovery helped reinforce the idea that ATP signaling plays a central role in regulating mood.
A Shared Biological Pathway for Depression and Anxiety
Gao explains, “This is the first direct evidence that deficient ATP release in [a region of the] hippocampus drives both depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, revealing a shared molecular pathway [for these conditions].” Identifying such a pathway is important, as depression and anxiety often occur together and can be difficult to treat simultaneously with existing therapies.
Gao notes that the link between connexin 43 and ATP release highlights a possible target for future treatments. By improving or restoring ATP signaling, scientists may eventually be able to develop interventions that address both conditions at once. The research team also plans to include both male and female mice in upcoming studies to determine whether these mechanisms operate similarly across sexes, which could broaden the relevance of their findings.

3 hours agoShareSaveSue Kinnear

Researchers report that people who have more muscle and a lower visceral fat to muscle ratio tend to show signs of a younger biological brain age. This conclusion comes from a study that will be presented next week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Visceral fat refers to the fat stored deep in the abdomen around key internal organs.
“Healthier bodies with more muscle mass and less hidden belly fat are more likely to have healthier, youthful brains,” said senior study author Cyrus Raji, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of radiology and neurology in the Department of Radiology at Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. “Better brain health, in turn, lowers the risk for future brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s.”
How MRI Measures Brain Age and Body Composition
Brain age is an estimate of how old the brain appears biologically, based on its structure as seen through MRI. Body MRI can track muscle mass, which serves as a marker for efforts to reduce frailty and strengthen overall health. Estimated brain age from structural scans may also shed light on risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, including muscle loss.
“While it is commonly known that chronological aging translates to loss of muscle mass and increased hidden belly fat, this work shows that these health measures relate to brain aging itself,” Dr. Raji said. “It shows muscle and fat mass quantified in the body are key reflectors of brain health, as tracked with brain aging.”
Study Details: Imaging, AI Analysis, and Participant Profile
The study evaluated 1,164 healthy adults (52% women) across four research sites using whole-body MRI. Participants had a mean chronological age of 55.17 years. Imaging included T1-weighted MRI sequences, which highlight fat as bright and fluid as dark, providing a clear view of muscle, fat, and brain tissue. An artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm measured total normalized muscle volume, visceral fat (hidden belly fat), subcutaneous fat (fat under the skin) and predicted brain age.

The data indicated that individuals with a higher visceral fat to muscle ratio had higher predicted brain age. Subcutaneous fat showed no meaningful association with how old the brain appeared.
“The participants with more muscle tended to have younger-looking brains, while those with more hidden belly fat relative to their muscle had older-looking brains,” Dr. Raji said. “The fat just under the skin wasn’t related to brain aging. In short, more muscle and a lower visceral fat to muscle ratio were linked to a younger brain.”
Implications for Health, Prevention, and Future Interventions
Dr. Raji explained that focusing on building muscle and reducing visceral fat are realistic and actionable goals. Whole-body MRI and AI-based brain age estimates can offer clear benchmarks for programs designed to lower visceral fat while maintaining or increasing muscle.
He also noted that the results highlight the close connection between physical health and brain health.
“This research has validated widely held hypotheses about the association between body composition biomarkers and brain health and provides a foundation for those biomarkers to be included in future trials of various metabolic interventions and treatments,” he said.

What the Findings Mean for GLP-1 Weight Loss Drugs
Commonly prescribed glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) weight loss medications, including Ozempic, are effective at reducing body fat but may also contribute to muscle loss. Dr. Raji suggested that the study’s findings could help guide the development of next-generation therapies. These future treatments may aim to reduce visceral fat more than subcutaneous fat while protecting muscle mass.
“Losing fat — especially visceral fat — while preserving muscle volume would have the best benefit on brain aging and brain health based on insights from our work,” he said. “Thus, our study can inform future treatments by promoting research that quantifies MRI of body fat, muscle and brain age, which can help determine the optimal dosing regimens for GLP-1s to achieve the best outcomes in body and brain health.”
Co-authors are Somayeh Meysami, M.D., Soojin Lee, Ph.D., Saurabh Garg, M.Sc., Nasrin Akbari, M.Sc., Rodrigo Solis Pompa M.D., M.H.Sc., Ahmed Gouda, M.Sc., Thanh Duc Nguyen, Ph.D., Saqib Abdullah Basar, M.B.B.S., M.P.H., Yosef G. Chodakiewitz, M.D., David A. Merrill, M.D., Ph.D., Alex Exuzides, Ph.D., M.D., Amar P. Patel, M.D., Daniel J. Durand, M.D., M.B.A., and Sam Hashemi, M.Sc.

Thousands of unpaid carers will have their cases reassessed after an official review found they had been left with huge debts caused by systemic failures.Former charity boss Liz Sayce found confusing guidance on Carer’s Allowance – given to those providing 35 hours of unpaid care a week – had left thousands with fines and surprise bills, sometimes running into thousands of pounds.The Guardian newspaper uncovered hundreds of carers claiming Carer’s Allowance had been convicted of benefit fraud, while others claimed they were harassed for money by officials.Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the government will “put right” any failures impacting carers.”We inherited this mess from the previous government, but we’ve listened to carers, commissioned an independent review, and are now making good for those affected,” McFadden said.”Rebuilding trust isn’t about warm words – it’s about action, accountability, and making sure our support works for the people who need it most.”The Sayce review found between 2015 and the summer of 2025 the official Carer’s Allowance guidance was “unclear” and “ill-defined” – preventing many carers from properly reporting their earnings.Unpaid carers who look after loved ones for at least 35 hours a week can claim £83.30 a week in Carer’s Allowance, as long as their weekly earnings stay under £196.But under a so-called “cliff-edge” earnings rule, anyone who exceeds this limit by as little as 1p must repay that entire week’s carer’s allowance.The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) also levies a £50 penalty on anyone who fails to properly declare a change in their earnings. The law allows income to be “averaged” over time, but Ms Sayce found “broadly drawn” regulations led to multiple interpretations by both DWP and the courts.As a result, carers who worked irregular hours or received variable wages often assumed their income could be averaged, but were instead fined by DWP.In her report Ms Sayce said “this wasn’t wilful rule-breaking – it simply wasn’t clear what earnings fluctuations carers should report”.The report found the DWP also largely failed to warn carers in time when they went over the earnings limit, meaning overpayments in some cases were allowed to accumulate “for months or years” before unwitting carers were handed huge bills.In a statement on Tuesday, the DWP said it will begin reassessing cases immediately and potentially cancel or repay debts.Ms Sayce welcomed the announcements, saying the policy had “major impacts on carers’ health, finances and family wellbeing”.Liberal Democrat Leader Sir Ed Davey said both Labour and the Tories should “apologise to the tens of thousands of carers who were treated so disgracefully in the last Parliament”.Sir Ed welcomed the announcement but warned “many carers face many more months of being hounded, with changes not due to come into force for another year”. Chief Executive of Carers UK Helen Walker said the government were “righting a clear wrong” and “addressing this injustice head on”.”We are hopeful that this can be the start of rebuilding carers’ trust in the system and that this is a positive indication that the door is open for further change,” Ms Walker added.

The personalized recommendation systems that curate content on platforms such as YouTube may also interfere with how people learn, according to new research. The study found that when an algorithm decided which information appeared during a learning task, participants who had no background knowledge on the topic tended to focus on only a small portion of what they were shown.
Because they explored less of the available material, these participants often answered questions incorrectly during later tests. Despite being wrong, they expressed high confidence in their responses.
These outcomes raise concerns, said Giwon Bahg, who conducted the work as part of his doctoral dissertation in psychology at The Ohio State University.
Algorithms Can Create Bias Even Without Prior Knowledge
Much of the existing research on personalized algorithms examines how they influence opinions about politics or social issues that people already know at least something about.
“But our study shows that even when you know nothing about a topic, these algorithms can start building biases immediately and can lead to a distorted view of reality,” said Bahg, now a postdoctoral scholar at Pennsylvania State University.
The findings appear in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.

Brandon Turner, a study co-author and professor of psychology at Ohio State, said the results indicate that people may quickly take the limited information supplied by algorithms and draw broad, often unfounded conclusions.
“People miss information when they follow an algorithm, but they think what they do know generalizes to other features and other parts of the environment that they’ve never experienced,” Turner said.
A Movie Recommendation Example
To illustrate how this bias might emerge, the researchers described a simple scenario: a person who has never watched movies from a certain country decides to try some. An on-demand streaming service offers recommendations.
The viewer selects an action-thriller because it appears at the top of the list. The algorithm then promotes more action-thrillers, which the viewer continues to choose.
“If this person’s goal, whether explicit or implicit, was in fact to understand the overall landscape of movies in this country, the algorithmic recommendation ends up seriously biasing one’s understanding,” the authors wrote.

By only seeing one genre, the person may overlook strong films in other categories. They may also form inaccurate and overly broad assumptions about the culture or society represented in those movies, the authors noted.
Testing Algorithmic Effects With Fictional Creatures
Bahg and his research team explored this idea experimentally with 346 online participants. To ensure that no one brought in prior knowledge, the researchers used a completely fictional learning task.
Participants studied several types of crystal-like aliens, each defined by six features that varied across categories. For instance, one square-shaped part of the alien might appear dark black in some types and pale gray in others.
The objective was to learn how to identify each alien type without knowing how many types existed.
How the Algorithm Guided Learning
In the experiment, the aliens’ features were concealed behind gray boxes. In one condition, participants were required to click all the features to see a complete set of information for each alien.
In another condition, participants chose which features to examine, and a personalization algorithm selected which items they were likely to sample most frequently. This algorithm steered them toward repeatedly examining the same features over time. They could still look at any feature they wanted, but they were also allowed to skip others entirely.
The results showed that those guided by the personalized algorithm viewed fewer features overall and did so in a patterned, selective manner. When they were later tested on new alien examples they had never seen before, they frequently sorted them incorrectly. Even so, participants remained confident in their answers.
“They were even more confident when they were actually incorrect about their choices than when they were correct, which is concerning because they had less knowledge,” Bahg said.
Implications for Children and Everyday Learning
Turner noted that these findings carry real-world significance.
“If you have a young kid genuinely trying to learn about the world, and they’re interacting with algorithms online that prioritize getting users to consume more content, what is going to happen?” Turner said.
“Consuming similar content is often not aligned with learning. This can cause problems for users and ultimately for society.”
Vladimir Sloutsky, professor of psychology at Ohio State, was also a co-author.

Pre-packaged milkshakes and coffees that are high in sugar will be hit with an extra tax from 2028, after the government said it was extending the tax on fizzy drinks to include milk-based products.”This government will not look away as children get unhealthier,” Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said in Parliament.That could mean an extra tax on popular products like Yazoo, Muller’s Frijj and Starbucks Caffe Latte as well as drinks branded “high protein” like Ufit and Shaken Udder.The levy, brought in by the Conservative government in 2018, is designed to reduce sugar consumption and obesity by giving manufacturers an incentive to use less sugar.The tax applies to products in cans, cartons and other packaging, but not to drinks sold over-the-counter in cafes or coffee shops.The government is also lowering the threshold at which the tax applies from 5g of sugar per 100 ml to 4.5g per 100ml.However, there will also be a “lactose allowance” to account for the naturally occurring sugars in milk.That means some of the sweetness in milk-based drinks will not count towards the total sugar when determining their liability for the tax.Fruit juices, alcohol-free beer and wine, and meal replacement drinks do not pay the tax. Drinks made with plant-based milk, such as soya, oat and almond will also come into the scope of the sugar levy if they contain 4.5g or more total sugars per 100ml.The milkshake tax has been criticised by politicians who see it as excessive interference from the government in personal consumption choices.However, the health secretary said it would support the health of the population and help reduce the burden on public health services.”Obesity robs children of the best possible start in life, hits the poorest hardest, sets them up for a lifetime of health problems and costs the NHS billions,” Streeting said.

3 hours agoShareSaveRachael McMenemyandLouise ParryShareSaveSir Terence EnglishA pioneering surgeon who carried out the first successful heart transplant in the UK has died aged 93.Sir Terence English had to fight for the right to carry out the surgery at Papworth Hospital in Cambridge in 1979, after resistance from the public and the government.The operation that paved the way to future transplants took place in August that year on 52-year-old Keith Castle, who lived for more than five years afterwards.Sir Terence’s family said he died on Sunday at his home in Iffley in Oxford, six days after having a stroke.Sir Terence was born in South Africa in October 1932.He studied mining engineering at Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg before deciding to switch to medicine, at Guy’s Hospital in London.He married Ann in 1963 and they had four children – Katherine, Arthur, Mary and William.William said his father often attributed his success to Ann, allowing him to focus on work and still enjoy family life. “He felt a real sense of debt and gratitude to our mum, because the support she gave him and the home allowed him to have the career he did.”His daughter Mary said the family were “immensely proud” of him and his work.English familySir Terence struggled to get government support for the procedure.Speaking to the BBC in 2019, he said: “Before [Keith Castle’s] operation I’d been met with tremendous criticism about heart transplantation, including a letter from the Department for Health at the end of 1978 saying there would be no funding and the moratorium on heart transplantation would be continuing.”I thought ‘damn that’ and managed to get approval from the Cambridge Area Health Authority – and we went ahead.”A first transplant in January 1979 did not succeed. While Sir Terence was retrieving the donor heart, the recipient had a cardiac arrest.He was quickly resuscitated and the subsequent operation went well, but the patient never recovered proper consciousness and died 17 days later.Seven months later, he had one more chance to prove heart transplants could be life saving.PA MediaKeith Castle a builder from London, needed a new heart and despite being “not the best candidate” – he was a smoker with peripheral vascular disease and a duodenal ulcer – Sir Terence believed the transplant would work.Heading into the operating theatre, Sir Terence reflected how he felt under immense pressure to succeed. “I very much had my back to the wall,” he said. Mr Castle lived for more than five years post-transplant and paved the way for the future of heart transplants at Papworth and in the UK. “Looking back, having read bits back, the resistance to it [the heart transplant] was quite well founded, but he proved them wrong,” William said. He said his father’s “conviction in own belief” was impressive but that he always said it was a team effort.”And he always celebrated the team at Papworth. It was the team that was important,” he added.Royal Papworth credited Sir Terence with helping it achieve an international reputation for heart transplantation and, later, heart-lung and lung transplants.In 1984, alongside Professor John Wallwork, Sir Terence performed Europe’s first heart-lung combined transplant.In 1991, he was knighted for his contributions to surgery and medicine.Sir Terence retired in the mid-1990s and moved to Oxford.Royal PapworthAfter retiring, Sir Terence had several “encore careers”, his children said.He served as President of the British Medical Association and took on charity work. He was a trustee of IDEALS (International Disaster & Emergency Aid with Long Term Support) and was founding patron of Primary Trauma Care.Both offer relief in areas affected by global conflict. “He was a noted humanitarian who devoted his services to surgical support for doctors in Pakistan and Gaza over the years,” Mary said.”Dad was able to take his lessons and learning to all parts of the world. He had an enduring appetite for work and to use his time in a meaningful way,” she added. He also contributed to the debate about assisted dying through his work with Dignity in Dying, his family said.Sir Terence was also a retired master of St Catharine’s College in Cambridge and honorary fellow of Worcester College Oxford.English familyHis family also remember a man who encouraged them to find their own passions and who showed immense care towards family, friends and patients over the years. William said while his father was “committed to work”, he also had an “amazing capacity for friendship and a capacity to make connections with people”. On his 93rd birthday, William said his father received an email from a patient he fitted with a heart valve 50 years ago, thanking him for his life. “It said ‘I don’t know if you remember me but I think of you ever day’.””Dad replied saying ‘happy birthday to your heart valve’ – and that’s his enduring legacy.”William, who works in intensive care medicine, said he also sees his father’s transplant legacy in his own patients. “Organ donation is amazing, it revolutionises people’s lives. That ripple effect when you look at one person receiving a donor organ.”Royal PapworthOutside of his work, Sir Terrence developed a love of classic cars, worldwide travel and an appreciation for the natural world. He took part in car rallies, once driving from London to Cape Town. “He did engineering first, so he was always interested in cars.””He bought a land cruiser he handed it down the family, he thought it was a very important family heirloom to pass down,” William said.English familyMore on this storyRelated internet links

17 minutes agoShareSaveShareSaveGetty ImagesMilkshakes and lattes are expected to be included in the government’s sugar tax scheme for the first time in the UK in a renewed attempt to help tackle obesity.The sugar tax, known formally as the soft drinks industry levy (SDIL), is a tax on pre-packaged drinks such as those sold in cans and cartons in supermarkets.How will it work?Extending the sugar tax to milk-based drinks is expected to happen from April 2028. The government says companies which makes these drinks will have to reduce the sugar they contain or face paying the tax.That means they could either taste different (less sugary) or cost a bit more.The tax was introduced by the Conservative government in April 2018 as a means to make diets healthier and tackle obesity, by cutting sugar intake.What drinks are included?The sugar tax applies to pre-packaged soft drinks with added sugar.It already applies to most sugary soft drinks sold in cans and cartons in supermarkets.Soon, it could also apply to sugary milk-based drinks sold in supermarkets cartons and cans.Milk-based drinks have been exempt from the sugar tax because they contain calcium, which is encouraged in children and young people’s diets.However, the high sugar content of some milk-based drinks means the government is reconsidering that exemption.The government has consulted on introducing a ‘lactose allowance’ to account for the natural sugars in the milk content of these drinks.It could also remove the exemption for milk substitute drinks with added sugars beyond those sugars derived from the main ingredient, such as oats or rice.Getty ImagesWhat drinks are not included?The sugar tax does not apply to drinks made and served in cafés, restaurants and bars. So coffees, lattes and other milky drinks made on café premises would not come under this tax.Soft drinks made only with natural sugars, such as cows’ milk and pure fruit juice, are also not part of the tax.Alcohol-free beer or wine, infant formula, drinks sold as powder and cocktails or mocktails served in an open container also don’t fall within the scope of the sugar tax.How much do companies pay?Currently, the tax is charged at 18p per litre on drinks containing at least 5g of total sugar per 100ml, and 24p per litre on drinks with 8g of sugar or more.But the government has been considering bringing down the maximum amount of sugar allowed in drinks from 5g to 4g per 100ml. What impact has the sugar tax had?To date, it’s led to a 46% reduction in the sugar contained in soft drinks affected, the government says. Nearly 90% of the market now contains less sugar than the level at which the tax applies.But experts say there is still too much sugar in UK diets.Free sugars should account for no more than 5% of daily energy intake, current UK advice says.But the amount of sugar consumed in the UK is around double that. And obesity rates in children and adults show no signs of going down either, with nearly two-thirds of people in the UK overweight or obese.This is what prompted the government to carry out a review of the tax, and extend it to milk-based drinks.

40 minutes agoShareSaveJames GallagherHealth and science correspondentShareSaveMonty Rakusen/GettyThe brain goes through five distinct phases in life, with key turning points at ages nine, 32, 66 and 83, scientists have revealed.Around 4,000 people up to the age of 90 had scans to reveal the connections between their brain cells.Researchers at the University of Cambridge showed that the brain stays in the adolescent phase until our early thirties when we “peak”.They say the results could help us understand why the risk of mental health disorders and dementia varies through life.The brain is constantly changing in response to new knowledge and experience – but the research shows this is not one smooth pattern from birth to death.Instead, these are the five brain phases:Childhood – from birth to age nineAdolescence – from nine to 32Adulthood – from 32 to 66Early ageing – from 66 to 83Late ageing – from 83 onwards”The brain rewires across the lifespan. It’s always strengthening and weakening connections and it’s not one steady pattern – there are fluctuations and phases of brain rewiring,” Dr Alexa Mousley told the BBC.Some people will reach these landmarks earlier or later than others – but the researchers said it was striking how clearly these ages stood out in the data. These patterns have only now been revealed due to the quantity of brain scans available in the study, which was published in the journal Nature Communications.The five brain phasesChildhood – The first period is when the brain is rapidly increasing in size but also thinning out the overabundance of connections between brain cells, called synapses, created at the start of life.The brain gets less efficient during this stage. It works like a child meandering around a park, going wherever takes their fancy, rather than heading straight from A to B.Adolescence – That changes abruptly from the age of nine when the connections in the brain go through a period of ruthless efficiency. “It’s a huge shift,” says Dr Mousley, describing the most profound change between brain phases.This is also the time when there is the greatest risk of mental health disorders beginning.Unsurprisingly adolescence starts around the onset of puberty, but this is the latest evidence suggesting it ends much later than we assumed. It was once thought to be confined to the teenage years, before neuroscience suggested it continued into your 20s and now early 30s.This phase is the brain’s only period when its network of neurons gets more efficient. Dr Mousely said this backs up many measures of brain function suggesting it peaks in your early thirties, but added it was “very interesting” that the brain stays in the same phase between nine and 32.Adulthood – Next comes a period of stability for the brain as it enters its longest era, lasting three decades.Change is slower during this time compared with the fireworks before, but here we see the improvements in brain efficiency flip into reverse.Dr Mousely said this “aligns with a plateau of intelligence and personality” that many of us will have witnessed or experienced.Early ageing – This kicks in at 66, but it is not an abrupt and sudden decline. Instead there are shifts in the patterns of connections in the brain.Instead of coordinating as one whole brain, the organ becomes increasingly separated into regions that work tightly together – like band members starting their own solo projects.Although the study looked at healthy brains, this is also the age at which dementia and high blood pressure, which affects brain health, are starting to show.Late ageing – Then, at the age of 83, we enter the final stage. There is less data than for the other groups as finding healthy brains to scan was more challenging. The brain changes are similar to early ageing, but even more pronounced.Dr Mousely said what really surprised her was how well the different “ages align with a lot of important milestones” such as puberty, health concerns later in life and even the pretty big social shifts in your early 30s such as parenthood.’A very cool study’The study did not look at men and women separately, but there will be questions such as the impact of menopause.Duncan Astle, professor of neuroinformatics at the University of Cambridge, said: “Many neurodevelopmental, mental health and neurological conditions are linked to the way the brain is wired. Indeed, differences in brain wiring predict difficulties with attention, language, memory, and a whole host of different behaviours.”Prof Tara Spires-Jones, director of the centre for discovery brain sciences at the University of Edinburgh, said: “This is a very cool study highlighting how much our brains change over our lifetimes.”She said the results “fit well” with our understanding of brain ageing, but cautioned “not everyone will experience these network changes at exactly the same ages”.