Covid Pandemic ‘had lasting impact’ On Brain Health of People Aged 50 or Over; Did Covid Cause a Dementia Timebomb? Brain Health of Over-50s Deteriorated 50% Faster Than Usual Under Pandemic-Era Restrictions, and other C-Virus related stories
Covid pandemic ‘had lasting impact’ on brain health of people aged 50 or over:
The pandemic has caused sustained harm to the brain health of people aged 50 or over, rapidly speeding up cognitive decline regardless of whether or not they caught Covid, researchers have discovered.
Almost 780 million people were killed or made ill by the coronavirus, according to the World Health Organization. Health experts are now learning more about the indirect effects of the biggest public health crisis in a century.
A study has found that cognitive function and working memory in older adults declined more quickly during the first year of the pandemic between March 2020 and February 2021, even if they were not infected with the virus. The trend continued into 2021/22, suggesting an impact beyond the initial lockdowns.
The research is the largest of its kind to link the pandemic conditions – and the enormous lifestyle shifts triggered by lockdowns and other Covid restrictions – to sustained cognitive decline.
The acceleration in cognitive decline has been exacerbated by a number of factors since the arrival of Covid, the researchers said. These included an increase in loneliness and depression, a fall in exercise and higher alcohol consumption, as well as the effects of the disease itself. The study, led by the University of Exeter and King’s College London, was published in the Lancet Healthy Longevity journal.
Anne Corbett, a professor in dementia research and the lead at Exeter for the Protect study, said: “Our findings suggest that lockdowns and other restrictions we experienced during the pandemic have had a real lasting impact on brain health in people aged 50 or over, even after the lockdowns ended.
“This raises the important question of whether people are at a potentially higher risk of cognitive decline, which can lead to dementia.—>READ MORE HERE
Did Covid cause a dementia timebomb? Brain health of over-50s deteriorated 50% faster than usual under pandemic-era restrictions:
Lockdowns have caused the brain health of over-50s to deteriorate 50 per cent faster than usual, a study found.
Levels of memory and cognitive function – 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 not exercising enough and drinking too much alcohol, as well as loneliness and depression.
Researchers from the University of Exeter and King’s College London analysed brain function tests from 3,142 people, aged between 50 and 90 and based in the UK.
Analysis showed the rate of cognitive decline quickened in the first year of the pandemic and was higher among those who had already shown signs of mild cognitive decline before the pandemic hit.
The pattern continued into the second year of the pandemic, which researchers said suggests an impact beyond the initial national lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, according to the 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 we experienced during the pandemic have had a real lasting impact on brain health in people aged 50 or over, even after the lockdowns ended. —>READ MORE HERE
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