Dr. Noa Bergman explains what causes Alzheimer's, is there a way to prevent the disease, and how to treat someone who has already become ill (Walla system!)
New research has found that married people have a lower risk of dementia and cognitive impairment than single or divorced people, backing up other major research on the benefits of being in a relationship.
Looking at a large sample of adults, researchers from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) identified a possible protective factor in being married in older life, while those who were single had a significantly increased risk of developing the neurodevelopmental disease.
"There is a correlation between being married in midlife and a lower risk of dementia as an elderly person. Our data also show that divorcees account for a significant proportion of dementia cases," said the author of the study published in the Journal of Aging and Health, and Gard Skirback.
To further examine the links between marriage and cognitive health in older people, the researchers took a sample of 8,706 adults between the ages of 44-68 and followed them as they aged beyond the age of 70. The goal was to identify how many of them were single or divorced and if there was a link to those who developed dementia after the age of 70.
Previous studies have identified social isolation as a strong risk factor for dementia, especially in men and those without children.
However, this study included both men and women, as well as people with and without children.
Social isolation is a strong risk factor for dementia (Photo: ShutterStock)
The results showed that 11.6 percent of the sample developed dementia, and 35.3 percent developed mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Among these people, the lowest incidence of dementia was in those who were continuously married, and the highest in those who were never married, then divorced, then intermittently divorced.
When the researchers adjusted the numbers to see what dementia cases would look like if everyone had the same risk as the married group, their calculations showed a 6 percent drop in cases.
why is it happening?
The study cannot yet reveal whether this is part of the relationship, the likelihood of having children, or some other potentially protective trait that comes with lasting marriage.
It can also be a variety of other factors, including obesity, stress from divorce, smoking and lack of exercise.
Regardless, it appears that unmarried and divorced people may account for a large number of dementia cases and that reducing social isolation may have a huge impact on improving the quality of life of old age.
health
news
Tags
marriage
dementia
Alzheimer's
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/SUVH2AYCK5CEJOESHCPGZHWC4Q.jpg)
