14 DAY TRIAL // Older adults are always encouraged to do crossword puzzles and other mentally challenging tasks. Doctors hope that this will stop the progression of cognitive decline, but now experts propose a different approach to doing the same – socializing.
Researchers behind the new work say that socialization could play an important role in keeping seniors' mental health stable for as long as possible. Additionally, this method is a lot more fun, the scientists argue, and will not be perceived as a strenuous exercise by those involved.
Socialization is as simple as talking with friends and family, say investigators from the Rush University Medical Center (RUMC). Attending parties or religious ceremonies are also excellent ways of getting in touch with others.
Doing so can help either prevent or delay cognitive decline during the latter years. During this study, experts took a great deal of precaution in establishing for sure that cognitive decline causes isolation from peers, and not the other way around, PsychCentral reports.
“It’s logical to think that when someone’s cognitive abilities break down, they are less likely to go out and meet friends, enjoy a camping trip, or participate in community clubs,” says Bryan James, PhD.
“If memory and thinking capabilities fail, socializing becomes difficult. But our findings suggest that social inactivity itself leads to cognitive impairments,” adds the expert, who was the lead researcher of the new investigation.
This study was carried out over several years on more than 1,000 adults. The average age in the research group was 80, and experts kept track of participants' medical histories. They also applied neuropsychological tests at regular intervals.
One of the possible explanations for the newly-discovered correlation is that “social activity challenges older adults to participate in complex interpersonal exchanges, which could promote or maintain efficient neural networks in a case of ‘use it or lose it',” the team leader adds.
Details of the new work were published in the latest issue of the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. All participants in the new tests were diagnosed as suffering from no cognitive impairments at the begging of the tests.
Those who engaged in high levels of social interactions and activities were found to experience only 25 percent the rate of cognitive decline experienced by those who did not partake in such activities.