Marriage can protect against dementia

Married people have a much lower risk of dementia

Living in a solid partnership has health benefits that can extend to reduced mortality from serious illnesses. Also, the risk of developing dementia is significantly reduced in married couples, according to a recent study. Compared to those who are married, lifelong single-person individuals have a 42 percent higher risk of dementia, the researchers report. Andrew Sommerlad of University College London (UCL).

The British scientists have systematically reviewed the relationships between marital status and the risk of developing dementia in a meta-analysis, and found a significantly reduced risk in married people. Apparently, the marriage has a very positive effect on the maintenance of cognitive abilities. So far, the researchers can only guess what causes behind it. Their results have been published in the journal "Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry".

More than 800,000 subjects examined

Previous studies have already shown that married people tend to lead a healthier lifestyle and have lower early mortality rates than singles. For their current meta-analysis, the researchers have now used the data of 812,047 participants from 15 existing studies, in which the relationship between marital status and dementia - adjusted to age and gender - was examined. The analysis was intended to illustrate the relative risk of dementia in widowed, divorced, and lifelong singles versus married couples. Summer Lad and colleagues.

Singles and widowed persons at increased risk

In the data analysis, it became clear that the singles had a 42 percent higher disease risk than the married and the widowed subjects showed a 20-fold higher risk. For the divorced, however, there was no increased risk. "Married people are prone to a healthier lifestyle and more socially committed, which may explain why they are less likely to suffer from dementia," Dr. Andrew Sommerlad in a UCL press release.

Possible causes of the increased risk of dementia

The increased risk of singles could, according to the researchers, be attributed to a generally poorer physical health in lifelong single persons. In widowed persons, the stress or mourning for the deceased may affect the nerve signaling and cause loss of cognitive ability, scientists suggest. The fact that divorced persons were not linked to the risk of dementia may be due to the lower number of persons with this status in the studies considered.

New approaches to dementia prevention

"Marriage can help both partners to live a healthier lifestyle, including doing more exercise, eating healthier foods, and less smoking and drinking, all with a lower risk of dementia," the researchers report. Social contact also plays a role. "We hope that our findings can be used to support dementia prevention in unmarried people, as the maintenance of physical health and ensuring mental stimulation through social engagement with unmarried elderly people can be beneficial," Dr , Sommerlad. (Fp)