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o what extent do factors such as education and socioeconomic
position affect our thinking skills and memory over time? Not as much as one
might think, a new study suggests.
Share on PinterestNew research finds
that cognitive ability at age 8 may indicate future risk of dementia.
The study set out to investigate what influences a person's
cognitive ability — that is, their ability to think, reason, and remember —
over a lifetime.
The researchers hoped that by getting an insight into what
impacts people's cognitive ability, they might be able to shed some light on
factors that lead to cognitive decline in later life, including Alzheimer's disease and
other forms of dementia.
Dementia, which affects around 5.8 million people
in the United States, can cause a decline in a person's ability to solve
problems, remember, speak, and think. In its most severe form, dementia has a
significant impact on a person's ability to carry out daily tasks.
But what if there was a way to understand the factors that
may affect cognitive decline? Predicting what may influence cognitive health in
later life could help stave off cognitive impairment.
The results of the study now appear in the journal Neurology. Its authors set
out to compare the results of thinking and memory tests in people at 8 years
old and 70 years old.
The researchers looked at 502 people who had all been born
in the same week in 1946. They had all taken cognitive tests at age 8 and again
at ages 69–71.
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The researchers behind the new study were looking for
factors that might serve to predict thinking and memory performance later in
life, such as education level and socioeconomic status.
"Finding these predictors is important," says
study author Jonathan M. Schott, of University College London in the United
Kingdom.
"If we can understand what influences an individual's
cognitive performance in later life, we can determine which aspects might be
modifiable by education or lifestyle changes like exercise, diet, or sleep,
which may, in turn, slow the development of cognitive decline."
Children
who performed highly did so at 70
The participants took a number of tests that measured skills
such as memory, language, orientation, and concentration. In one test, for
example — which was similar to one they had taken as children — they had to
look at geometric shapes and spot the missing piece out of five options.
The researchers looked at sex, childhood ability, education,
and socioeconomic status, which they determined by the participants' occupation
at age 53.
They found that the ability to
think as a child tallied with the scores they achieved over 60 years later.
Those who performed in the top 25% as children, for example, were likely to
hold their position in the top 25% at 70 years of age.
Not only that, but women outperformed men when it came to
thinking speed and tests of memory.
Education also had an effect. Those with a college degree,
for example, scored around 16% higher than those who had left school before age
16.
Higher socioeconomic status did not have a significant
impact on cognitive performance. Those who had been professionals, for example,
recalled an average of 12 details from a story, while those who had had manual
jobs remembered 11 details, on average.
The participants also underwent detailed MRI scans and PET scans to look for
beta-amyloid plaques in the brain. These are markers of Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia, accounting for 60–80% of
all dementia cases.
The researchers found that the participants with
beta-amyloid plaques scored lower on the tests. For example, on a missing
pieces test, these participants scored 8% lower, on average.
They found no link between the presence of plaques and
childhood cognitive ability, socioeconomic status, education, or sex.
"Our
study found that small differences in thinking and memory associated with
amyloid plaques in the brain are detectable in older adults even at an age when
those who are destined to develop dementia are still likely to be many years
away from having symptoms."
Jonathan
M. Schott
"Continued follow-up of these individuals and future
studies are needed to determine how to best use these findings to more
accurately predict how a person's thinking and memory will change as they
age."
The study was limited in that all participants were white.
For this reason, it is difficult to say whether or not the findings will apply
to other populations.
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