Rural living keeps people smarter as they age, says study

LIVING in the countryside preserves people’s cognitive powers as they get older, a study has found.

A 10-year analysis of more than 6,500 people living in the UK showed that mental decline was slower among those who lived in villages and rural neighbourhoods.

Scientists believe that an absence of pollution, a more active lifestyle and reduced noise and stress all contribute to the trend.

The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, followed participants aged between 56 and 68, subjecting them to a series of cognitive tests at three intervals.

These tests assessed their verbal and mathematical reasoning, verbal fluency, short-term memory, as well as the decline of these functions.

Over a decade, the cognitive decline of the country dwellers was on average 4.6 per cent less than the urban residents. “There is evidence that the risk for dementia and cognitive decline can be affected by exposure to urban-related environmental hazard, such as air pollution and noise, and lifestyle, such as stress and sedentary behaviour,” said Carmen de Keijzer, who led the study at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health.

“In contrast, living near green spaces has been proposed to increase physical activity and social support, reduce stress, and mitigate exposure to air pollution and noise.”

Recent evidence has pointed to cognitive benefits to children of living among green spaces. However, research into older adults has so far been scarce and thrown up inconsistent results. The data from the study indicated the association between rural living and slower cognitive decline was stronger in women than in men.

The proportion of people aged over 60 year is expected to almost double globally between 2015 and 2050 and it has been predicted that the number of dementia cases will grow at a similar pace worldwide.

Payam Dadvand, another of the researchers, said: “If confirmed by future studies, our results may provide an evidence base for implementing targeted interventions aimed at decelerating cognitive decline in older adults residing in urban areas and hence improving their quality of life.”