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UCI MIND Launches MIND Matters Club

By January 26, 2012In the News

Dr. Frank LaFerla, Dr. Margaret Gatz, and Dr. Cordula Dick-Muehlke at MIND Matters Club Launch

On January 19, UCI MIND launched the MIND Matters Club at the home of Burton and Linda Young, who graciously hosted this inaugural gathering of individuals who have committed to  giving $1,906 or more annually to UCI MIND.  Guests gathered to hear Dr. Margaret Gatz, Professor of Psychology at the University of Southern California and Foreign Adjunct Professor at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, describe her research into dementia among Swedish twins.  Dr. Gatz and her colleagues followed Swedish twins across the past 25 years in order to identify differences between twin partners who developed dementia and those who did not.  Cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity in midlife emerged as major risk factors fordementia while physical exercise, higher educational attainment, and greater work complexity were clearly protective against cognitive impairment.  As Dr. Gatz noted, “Brain health is a lifetime endeavor, as our research has shown that lifestyle choices and environment in early-to-midlife play a role in the development of or protection against dementia.”

Members of the MIND Matters Club have a special interest in promoting their own cognitive health and, as such, can take advantage of benefits that include a confidential annual memory screening and brain health consultation, including a review of individual risk factors, quarterly private receptions featuring speakers, like Dr. Gatz, on cognitive fitness, an annual  appreciation event at the home of UCI MIND Director, Frank LaFerla, Ph.D., offering an opportunity to “meet and greet” UCI MIND researchers, and priority access, if needed, to the UCI MIND Memory Assessment Clinic.   Additionally, MIND Matters Club members receive an exclusive quarterly news brief highlighting recent discoveries at UCI MIND and elsewhere.

UCI MIND supporters can join the MIND Matters Club directly, or if they choose, give at the level of $1,906 or above in another way, such as by sponsoring the Time of Your Life event on March 10th at the Center Club, or simply writing a check to UCI MIND.  All donors who give $1,906 or above will be recognized as members of the MIND Matters Club in recognition of their generosity.

In 1906, Dr. Alois Alzheimer discovered the disease that would eventually bear his name and now affects more than 5.4 million Americans.  Today, members of the MIND Matters Club support the work of hundreds of researchers and clinicians at UCI MIND who are dedicated to preserving brain health.   From bench science to the clinic, gifts enable UCI MIND to advance knowledge of brain aging, encourage early detection and treatment of cognitive impairment, and promote brain health.

For more information about the MIND Matters Club, contact Linda Scheck, Director of Development and Donor Relations, at lscheck@uci.edu or (949) 824-3451.