Contact with others has been proposed as protective against cognitive decline and dementia. This has also been underlined by the recently published report of the Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention, Intervention and Care, suggesting that a substantial proportion of dementia cases can be attributed to social isolation. Social contact is complex and it is not yet clear, which aspect represent the most suitable targets for risk reduction. A recent study by the Alzheimer Centrum Limburg published in the journal Psychological Medicine aimed to examine how different social contact factors are interrelated and which ones are most predictive of dementia risk. For this, the team of researchers analysed data of more than 7500 participants of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), who were followed up between 2004 and 2019. Information regarding various aspects of social contact collected in 2004 was used to identify distinct social factors. This included information about the size of a person’s social network, the frequency of engagement in social leisure activities, but also feelings of loneliness and perceived social support.
The authors found that higher frequency and quality of contact with the respondents’ children (among those who have children) and more frequent social leisure activity engagement were associated with a lower risk of dementia. Conversely, those reporting more negative experiences of social support (e.g., frequently being disappointed by one’s social network) and higher levels of loneliness had a higher risk of developing dementia. Additional analyses suggested that these factors may be linked to dementia through their connection with depressive symptoms. Previous studies suggest that social contact may protect against dementia by building up cognitive reserve or buffering stress. Findings from this study suggest that symptoms of depression may represent an additional psychological link. “Besides raising awareness and promoting social contact on an individual basis among the general public, we should also target external barriers keeping people from engaging in a socially active lifestyle” Lukas Duffner, lead author of the publication, says. The full study can be read (open access) here:
