A US study suggests that maintaining a dynamic social life could play a key role in reducing the risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment.

In Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, researchers at Rush University suggest that maintaining a healthy brain depends on regular social interaction.

An active social life could significantly reduce the risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment in the elderly.

To reach these conclusions, the researchers followed 1,923 adults with an average age of 80, all free of cognitive disorders at the start of the study.

They followed participants over five years, during which each one was given neuropsychological tests and a questionnaire on the frequency of social activities (visits to friends, restaurant outings, participation in leisure activities, etc.).

Maintaining a dynamic social life helps seniors reduce their risk of dementia by 38% and mild cognitive impairment by 21%. But the benefits go far beyond this.

The authors of the study claim that delaying the onset of dementia by five years could extend life expectancy by three years. Such a delay would also contribute to a 40% reduction in the costs associated with dementia care over the next 30 years, generating significant savings for public health.

Why is there such a strong link between social activity and cognition? One hypothesis is that interacting with others forces us to adapt, understand and react to a variety of situations.

This process stimulates the brain‘s neural circuits, strengthening their resistance to aging-related alterations.

“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’,” explains Bryan James, associate professor of internal medicine at Rush University and co-author of the study, in a statement.

While these results are encouraging, they are nonetheless preliminary. Future research will need to determine whether specific interventions promoting social activity in the elderly could be an effective strategy for preventing cognitive decline.

In the meantime, one thing is certain: maintaining social relationships could be as beneficial for the brain as physical exercise is for the body.

A Japanese study, published in 2023 in the journal Neurology, reveals that elderly people with little social contact have an increased risk of reduced brain volume in regions affected by dementia.

However, the researchers behind the study point out that these results highlight a correlation, without demonstrating that social isolation leads directly to brain shrinkage.

Hence the importance of maintaining an active social life at all ages, not only for emotional well-being, but also as a potential protective factor against cognitive decline.