How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan
Background/Objectives: In the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the prevalence of cognitive decline among the elderly population. This phenomenon is further compounded by the concurrent rise in life expectancy, indicating a growing concern for the health and well-being of individuals...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Brain Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/6/652 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850156260376182784 |
|---|---|
| author | Francesca Morganti Ilia Negri |
| author_facet | Francesca Morganti Ilia Negri |
| author_sort | Francesca Morganti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background/Objectives: In the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the prevalence of cognitive decline among the elderly population. This phenomenon is further compounded by the concurrent rise in life expectancy, indicating a growing concern for the health and well-being of individuals in this demographic. Dementia has become a disease with a strong social impact, not exclusively limited to its health dimension. It is generally accepted that lifestyle factors and psychological attitudes toward life challenges may serve as protective mechanisms against pathological cognitive decline. The objective of this contribution is to evaluate the impact of lifestyle factors (e.g., physical activity, employment history, nutrition, technology use, etc.), stressors (e.g., illness, rare events, abandonments, home moving, etc.), and sociability (e.g., marriage, active friend network, children proximity, work relationships, etc.) at the onset of pathological cognitive frailty. Methods: In this study, a semi-structured interview was administered to 32 individuals over the age of 65 during their initial neuropsychological evaluation for suspected dementia. Results: Linear regressions with Mini Mental State Examination scores indicated that lifestyle and sociability factors offer a degree of protection against cognitive decline, while stressors were found to be unrelated to this phenomenon. Conclusions: The utilization of contemporary technologies, the possession of a driver’s license, and the maintenance of an active social network have been demonstrated to possess a high degree of predictive value with respect to cognitive reserve in the context of aging. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ec6b52f0d38d450eab1cf4b29114c6bd |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2076-3425 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-ec6b52f0d38d450eab1cf4b29114c6bd2025-08-20T02:24:37ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252025-06-0115665210.3390/brainsci15060652How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During LifespanFrancesca Morganti0Ilia Negri1Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Bergamo, 24129 Bergamo, ItalyDepartment of Economy Statistic and Finance, University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, ItalyBackground/Objectives: In the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the prevalence of cognitive decline among the elderly population. This phenomenon is further compounded by the concurrent rise in life expectancy, indicating a growing concern for the health and well-being of individuals in this demographic. Dementia has become a disease with a strong social impact, not exclusively limited to its health dimension. It is generally accepted that lifestyle factors and psychological attitudes toward life challenges may serve as protective mechanisms against pathological cognitive decline. The objective of this contribution is to evaluate the impact of lifestyle factors (e.g., physical activity, employment history, nutrition, technology use, etc.), stressors (e.g., illness, rare events, abandonments, home moving, etc.), and sociability (e.g., marriage, active friend network, children proximity, work relationships, etc.) at the onset of pathological cognitive frailty. Methods: In this study, a semi-structured interview was administered to 32 individuals over the age of 65 during their initial neuropsychological evaluation for suspected dementia. Results: Linear regressions with Mini Mental State Examination scores indicated that lifestyle and sociability factors offer a degree of protection against cognitive decline, while stressors were found to be unrelated to this phenomenon. Conclusions: The utilization of contemporary technologies, the possession of a driver’s license, and the maintenance of an active social network have been demonstrated to possess a high degree of predictive value with respect to cognitive reserve in the context of aging.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/6/652cognitive reservefrailty in agingdementia preventionlifespan preventionlifestyle risk reductionstressors |
| spellingShingle | Francesca Morganti Ilia Negri How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan Brain Sciences cognitive reserve frailty in aging dementia prevention lifespan prevention lifestyle risk reduction stressors |
| title | How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan |
| title_full | How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan |
| title_fullStr | How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan |
| title_full_unstemmed | How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan |
| title_short | How Cognitive Reserve Could Protect from Dementia? An Analysis of Everyday Activities and Social Behaviors During Lifespan |
| title_sort | how cognitive reserve could protect from dementia an analysis of everyday activities and social behaviors during lifespan |
| topic | cognitive reserve frailty in aging dementia prevention lifespan prevention lifestyle risk reduction stressors |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/6/652 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT francescamorganti howcognitivereservecouldprotectfromdementiaananalysisofeverydayactivitiesandsocialbehaviorsduringlifespan AT ilianegri howcognitivereservecouldprotectfromdementiaananalysisofeverydayactivitiesandsocialbehaviorsduringlifespan |