Socializing Can Help Elderly Women Stay Sharp
June 4, 2008
Socializing with friends and family can do more than lift the spirits of elderly
women it can improve cognition and might help prevent dementia, according to a
new study.
The study began in 2001 and included women at least 78 years old who were free
of signs of dementia. Researchers conducted follow-up interviews between 2002
and 2005.
"We've interviewed people who were not demented and who were able to report
on their social network at baseline in 2001," said lead author Valerie
Crooks. "By starting with people who are cognitively intact and following
them over time, you can begin to make a legitimate link between social networks
and dementia."
Crooks is director of clinical trials administration and a research scientist at
the Southern California Permanente Medical Group. The study appears in the July
issue of The American Journal of Public Health.
Women frequently experience increasing social isolation as they age, but it has
been difficult to make a solid connection between this social separation and
cognitive function and dementia.
For this study, researchers pooled data from 2,249 members of a health
maintenance organization, comparing health conditions and demographic
information for women with and without dementia at follow-up, at which time they
identified 268 new dementia cases in the previously screened women.
The researchers rated each woman's social network by asking about the number of
friends and family members who kept in regular contact, and of these, how many
she felt she could rely on for help or confide in.
Of the 456 women with low "social network" scores, 80 women (18
percent) had developed dementia. Of the 1793 women with stronger social
networks, 188 (10 percent) had developed dementia.
"The study does a laudatory job of addressing the relationship of these
variables," said Deborah Newquist, Ph.D., director of geriatric services at
Louisville, Ky.-based ResCare, Inc. However, concluding that isolation causes
dementia might be overstating the case, said Newquist, who is not associated
with the study.
"The fundamental problem here is one of the chicken and the egg," she
said. "Are weak social relationships caused by dementia or the other way
around?"
""Finding ways to help older adults remain engaged in productive and
enjoyable activities is an important component of successful aging," said
Cathleen Connell, Ph.D., head researcher at the Center for Managing Chronic
Disease at the University of Michigan. "Not only have social networks been
linked to positive physical and mental health outcomes, but also to quality of
life."
"Our findings indicate that it's important to think about ways to try to
reduce the amount of isolation people have even those with families,"
Crooks said. "It's also important for us to find out what kinds of social
support groups we can create for people who are isolated based on extreme age or
lack of family."
The American Journal of Public Health is the monthly journal of the
American Public Health Association. Visit http://www.apha.org
for more information.
Crooks VC, et al. Social network, cognitive function, and dementia incidence
among elderly women. Am J Public Health 98(7), 2008.
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