Care Connection Webinar: Loneliness: A Hidden Risk for Memory Decline
February 9, 2026 @ 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm EST
Dr. Christina Chen will address how chronic loneliness can increase the risk of developing memory loss conditions like Alzheimer’s disease or other related dementias, and the biological and behavioral mechanisms behind this risk. She will include positive methods for changing a state of loneliness with the goal of maintaining brain health as well as improving the quality of life for people currently living with dementia.
Speaker: Christina Chen, MD
Christina Chen, M.D., is a geriatrician in the division of Community Internal Medicine, Geriatrics and Palliative Care at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., with a dual appointment in Integrative Medicine and Health, where she trained in acupuncture. Dr. Chen is involved in a variety of educational endeavors, including course director for geriatrics curriculum (Senior Sages Program) at the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, didactic core curriculum leader for the Geriatrics Medicine Fellowship, and course director for the Care of the Older Adult, a continuing medical education conference. Her research focus is on transforming dementia care through integrative therapies and environmental redesign and she has led several clinical trials. Dr. Chen is the host of the Mayo Clinic podcast, “Aging Forward.”