Social activity later in life may reduce risk of dementia
 

Good news for all of those social butterflies out there. A research study published this month found a link between high levels of social contact with a lower likelihood of developing dementia later in life. Andrew Sommerlad, Ph.d, from the Division of Psychiatry at the University of London, is the primary author of the study.

Sommerlad and colleagues became interested after reading numerous reports that suggested dementia could be prevented by social interaction. However, all of these studies were conducted for four years or less. As a result, the team decided to create their own long term study. From 1985-1988, the team gathered 10,308 participants who were all between the ages of 35-55. For the next 28 years, 10,228 participants were clinically followed by the team. During this period, the participants reported six different times on their social contact through a questionnaire that inquired into relationships, with friends and family. In addition to questionnaires, five different cognitive assessments were completed using "tests of verbal memory, verbal fluency, and reasoning." As a way to examine for the possibilities of dementia, the team looked at mortality and 3 clinical databases.

In the end, the study found that having social contact later in life with friends, but not relatives, may lower the risk of dementia by 12 percent. Although the analysis of the findings were observational, Professor Gill Livingston, a co-writer on the study, noted that social engagement helps build a stronger cognitive reserve. Think of your cognitive reserve as your brain’s flexibility and capacity to use new information. Additionally, Sommerlad noted in the study,

“[W]e've found that social contact in middle age and late life appears to lower the risk of dementia. This finding could feed into strategies to reduce everyone's risk of developing dementia, adding yet another reason to promote connected communities and find ways to reduce isolation and loneliness."

If you are interested in reading more into this particular research, a link is provided below of the new study.

PLOS Medicine: Association of social contact with dementia and cognition: 28-year follow-up of the Whitehall II cohort study