Our Aging Internal Clocks–Slowing Down?

NPR ran an interesting story on December 22, 2015 on how our internal clocks may begin to lose time, but we have backup clocks ready to start ticking!  As Aging Brain’s Internal Clock Fades, A New Timekeeper May Kick In notes that

We all have a set of so-called clock genes that keep us on a 24-hour cycle. In the morning they wind us up, and at night they help us wind down. A study out Monday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that those genes might beat to a different rhythm in older folks.

One of the authors of the study refers to the genes as the conductors of a person’s orchestra and somehow for elders, “[t]heir orchestras seem to go off the beat, but it isn’t known why.” Before worrying about being “out of tune”, take heart that the study found that elders have a back-up clock that starts keeping time when the main internal clock begins to get out of tune.  The researchers are particularly interested in how this affects individuals who sundown because of dementia.  The NPR story includes an audio version of the story in addition to the print version.

The abstract of the study is available here.  The full article requires a subscription. Click here for more information.