Have you ever walked to the shops, only to find when you get there that you've completely forgotten what you go for? Or have you struggled to remember the name of an old friend? For years, we've accepted that a forgetful brain is as much a part of aging as wrinkles  and grey hair. But now a new book suggests we've got _ all wrong.      According to The Secret Life Of The Grown-up Brain, by science writer, Barbara Strauch, our brains actually get better with age. In fact, she argues many new studies have found that the brain hits its peak   between our 40s and 60s --much later than previously thought.      Furthermore, not losing many brain cells as we age, we preserve them, and even produce new ones well into middle age. For years it's been accepted that the brain, much like the body, got worse with age. But the longest, largest study into what happens to people as they age  suggests otherwise.      This continuing research has followed 6,000 people since 1956, testing them every seven years. It has found that, on average, they performed better in cognitive tests in their late 40s and 50s than they had in their 20s. Specifically, older people did better in tests of vocabulary, spatial orientation   skills, verbal memory (how many words you can remember) and problem solving.      Where they were weaker was in numeracy   (how quickly one can multiply, add, subtract and divide) and the speed at which they could move. However, with harder tasks, such as problem-solving and language, we are at our best at middle age and beyond. In short, researchers are going to come up with scientific evidence that we do get wiser with age. What is NOT true of this new research?
It is the longest and largest of its kind. It has been running since 1956. The 6,000 people have been tested at least four times so far. Researchers have provided supporting scientific evidence