Promoting cognitive resilience and reducing frailty in older Veterans with bright light therapy

用明亮的光疗法促进老年退伍军人的认知和减少虚弱 脆弱是一种多因素综合征，其特征是易受压力因素的影响， 残疾和死亡风险。65岁或以上的退伍军人中有30%身体虚弱， 高于年龄匹配的非退伍军人虚弱与认知障碍有着千丝万缕的联系， 退伍军人特别容易受到影响，14%的人表现出认知能力下降，有些人早发 年仅45岁重要的是，70%的体弱和认知受损的老年人表现出睡眠不足， 这使得识别和改善睡眠质量成为一种有吸引力的治疗策略， 增强健康。此外，这是特别感兴趣的，因为55%的老年退伍军人经历睡眠 干扰.本研究的目的是探讨利用明亮的光疗法（BLT）的可行性 作为通过减少昼夜节律紊乱来改善睡眠的策略。长期目标是 评估老年退伍军人改善认知和减少虚弱的潜力。BLT的工作原理是 通过短暂暴露于特定波长的光来调整下丘脑生物钟 唤醒后，恢复褪黑激素和昼夜节律。然而，BLT并没有 检查以减少老年退伍军人群体的虚弱。因此，该项目将为 对于大型试验，评估BLT在治疗和预防认知障碍中的作用， 健康老龄化

Promoting cognition and reducing frailty in older Veterans with bright light therapy Frailty is a multifactorial syndrome characterized by vulnerability to stressors that increases disability and mortality risk. Thirty percent of Veterans 65 years or older are frail, which is three-times higher than aged matched non-Veterans. Frailty is intricately linked with cognitive impairment and Veterans are particularly susceptible with 14 percent exhibiting cognitive decline, some with early onset as young as 45 years of age. Importantly, 70% of frail and cognitively impaired older adults exhibit sleep disturbances, which makes identifying and improving sleep quality an attractive therapeutic strategy to enhance healthspan. Furthermore, this is of special interest as 55% of older Veterans experience sleep disturbances. The goal of this study is to examine the feasibility of utilizing bright light therapy (BLT) as a strategy to improve sleep via reduction of circadian rhythm disturbances. The long-term goal is to assess the potential for improving cognition and reducing frailty in older Veterans. BLT works by resynchronizing the hypothalamic biological clock via brief exposure to specific wavelengths of light following awakening, which restores melatonin and circadian rhythms. However, BLT has not been examined for reducing frailty in older Veteran populations. This project will therefore lay the foundation for larger trials the evaluate BLT in the treatment and prevention of cognitive disorders and to promote healthy aging.