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Lockdowns have caused the brain health of over-50s to deteriorate 50 percent faster than normal, a study has found.
Levels of memory and cognitive functions ? such as decision making and problem solving ? declined more rapidly during the pandemic.
Experts said this was likely due to factors exacerbated by the pandemic, such as insufficient exercise and drinking too much alcohol, as well as loneliness and depression.
Researchers from the University of Exeter and King’s College London analyzed brain function tests from 3,142 people, aged between 50 and 90, based in Britain.
Analysis showed that the rate of cognitive decline accelerated in the first year of the pandemic and was higher among those who were already showing signs of mild cognitive decline before the pandemic hit.
Levels of memory and cognitive functions ? such as decision making and problem solving ? declined more rapidly during the pandemic. Experts said this was likely due to factors exacerbated by the pandemic, such as insufficient exercise and drinking too much alcohol, as well as loneliness and depression.
This pattern continued into the second year of the pandemic, which researchers say suggests an impact beyond the initial national lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, according to findings published in the Lancet.
Anne Corbett, professor of dementia research at the University of Exeter, said: ‘Our findings suggest that lockdowns and other restrictions experienced during the pandemic have had a lasting impact on brain health in people aged 50 or over, even after the lockdowns had ended. .
‘This raises the important question of whether people are at potentially higher risk of cognitive decline that can lead to dementia.’
Dag Aarsland, professor of old age psychiatry at King’s, said the findings underlined the importance of careful monitoring of people at risk during major events such as the pandemic.
He said: ‘We know much of the risk for further decline, and can now add Covid-19 to this list.
‘On the positive side, there is evidence that lifestyle changes and improved health management can positively influence mental functioning.’
It comes as a new poll shows four in ten British adults (40 percent) do not realize dementia is a cause of death, despite it being the biggest killer in Britain.
The study of 2,530 adults, conducted by Alzheimer’s Research UK, found that only a third (36 percent) could reduce their risk of developing the disease.
This is despite studies suggesting that four in 10 cases of dementia are linked to factors that people can potentially influence, such as diet and exercise.
Dr. Susan Mitchell, head of policy at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: ‘This important study helps show how the profound lifestyle changes brought about by lockdown restrictions may have affected the country’s brain health.
?This underlines the fact that we can all take steps to protect our brain health.
WHAT IS DEMENTIA?
Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of neurological conditions
A GLOBAL CARE
Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of progressive neurological conditions (affecting the brain) that affect memory, thinking and behavior.
There are many forms of dementia, of which Alzheimer’s disease is the most common.
Some people may have a combination of different forms of dementia.
Regardless of which type is diagnosed, each person will experience dementia in their own unique way.
Dementia is a global problem, but it is most common in wealthier countries, where people are likely to live to a very old age.
HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED?
The Alzheimer’s Society reports that there are currently more than 900,000 people living with dementia in the UK. This number is expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting between 50 and 75 percent of those diagnosed.
There are an estimated 5.5 million people in the US with Alzheimer’s disease. A similar percentage increase is expected in the coming years.
As a person’s age increases, so does the risk that he or she will develop dementia.
The number of diagnoses is increasing, but it is believed that many people with dementia are still undiagnosed.
IS THERE A TREATMENT?
There is currently no medicine against dementia.
But new medications can slow its progression and the sooner it is caught, the more effective treatments can be.
Source: Alzheimer’s Association