How primary school marks could predict dementia risk
GOOD grades at primary school and a challenging job have been linked to a lower risk of dementia, research suggests.
But a separate study found that loneliness, too little exercise and too much TV can accelerate age-related mental decline.
A Swedish study that followed 440 people aged at least 75 found those who had been in the bottom fifth for school grades at age ten had a 50 per cent increase in the risk of developing dementia over the nine-year study.
Participants who had complex jobs involving working with people recorded a 60 per cent lower risk of dementia – although this was only true in women.
A second Swedish study looked at 7,500 people aged at least 65 over 20 years and found dementia rates were 21 per cent higher in those whose school grades had been in the bottom fifth of the population. They were 23 per cent lower among those with complex jobs involving data and numbers.
The research was presented at a confer- ence on Alzheimer’s in Washington DC. Another US study of more than 3,200 adults aged 18 to 30 over 25 years found participants who took little exercise and watched lots of TV were almost two times more likely to have poor cognitive function at the end of the study.
Previous research has shown that loneliness can be as bad for health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and social isolation may be more damaging than not exercising – and is twice as harmful as obesity.
Another study from Harvard Medical School in Boston shows the effect of loneliness on the mind. Researchers tested more than 8,000 adults aged at least 65 for mental sharpness every two years for 12 years.
Although the mind would be expected to slow down with age, the mental dulling effect was accelerated by 20 per cent in the loneliest people, the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference heard.
Caroline Abrahams, of Age UK, said: ‘Loneliness not only makes us feel miserable, there is mounting evidence that it has a serious impact on our mental and physical health.’