However, transient loneliness compared with no loneliness during middle age appears to lower dementia risk<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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TUESDAY, April 6, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Persistent loneliness in midlife is an independent risk factor for later dementia and Alzheimer disease, according to a study published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia<\/em>.<\/p>\n Samia C. Akhter-Khan, from Humboldt University of Berlin, and colleagues assessed loneliness in cognitively normal middle-aged adults participating in the Framingham Heart Study using one item from the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale and then tracked future Alzheimer disease and dementia.<\/p>\n The researchers found that after adjusting for demographics, social network, physical health, and apolipoprotein E \u00ce\u00b54, persistent loneliness was associated with a higher risk for dementia onset (hazard ratio, 1.91) compared with no loneliness. Transient loneliness was associated with a lower risk for dementia onset (hazard ratio, 0.34) compared with no loneliness. The investigators observed similar associations for Alzheimer disease risk and loneliness. <\/p>\n “Our findings are in line with evolutionary theories stating that loneliness could be both adaptive and maladaptive for humans, depending on its persistency,” the authors write.<\/p>\n Abstract\/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)<\/a><\/p>\n <\/i><\/p>\n