Oral

Growing evidence suggests healthy lifestyles may help maintain cognitive health, and notably reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. The Healthy Aging Research Network (HAN), a group of 9 universities working collaboratively with their communities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is conducting formative research to design public health interventions. In 2005, the HAN began a four-year project to investigate: attitudes about healthy aging and cognitive health; language used to describe cognitive health issues; and attitudes about behaviors that have been associated with cognitive health. This symposium provides the study rationale, design, and methods, as well as results representing views of a wide diversity of Americans. We examined the literature on promoting cognitive health, convened a national research meeting of experts in cognitive health and public health interventions, identified research questions, developed common focus group protocols and a corresponding survey, recruited and conducted focus groups, and analyzed resulting data. For results reported in this symposium, we conducted 52 focus groups with 446 participants in 2005-2006, and 28 focus groups and in-depth interviews with 168 participants in 2006-2007. Focus groups were in English, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Vietnamese, and represented African Americans, American Indians, Asian Americans, Hispanics, non-Hispanic whites, caregivers, physicians, individuals with cognitive impairment, and rural and urban residents. The qualitative and quantitative data provide a wealth of opportunities for better understanding healthy aging in the context of cognitive health, and for designing effective public health interventions for promoting cognitive health among diverse populations.

Session Objectives: * Identify attitudes about brain health among diverse populations. * Articulate ways that health promotion efforts may best help individuals and communities adopt behaviors associate with brain health. * Describe healthy aging in the context of cognitive health.

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing