Study shows technology slows dementia
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Contrary to previous studies, new research shows that using technology could slow dementia.
With the first generation of people exposed widely to technology now approaching old age, how has its use affected their risk of cognitive decline?
That’s a question researchers from two Texas universities sought to answer in a new meta-analysis study, a review of previous studies, published Monday in the journal Nature Human Behavior. The query investigates the “digital dementia hypothesis,” which argues that lifetime use may increase reliance on technology and weaken cognitive abilities over time.
“We say a really active brain in youth and midlife is a brain that is more resilient later,” said Dr. Amit Sachdev, medical director of the Department of Neurology and Ophthalmology at Michigan State University, who wasn’t involved in the study.
The authors discovered that the digital dementia hypothesis may not bear out: Their analysis of 57 studies of more than 411,000 older adults found technology use was associated with a 42% lower risk of cognitive impairment, which was defined as a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment or dementia.
Forms of technology included computers, smartphones, internet, email, social media or “mixed/multiple uses,” according to the new study.
“That these effects were found in studies even when factors like education, income, and other lifestyle factors were adjusted was also encouraging: the effect doesn’t seem just due to other brain health factors,” co-lead study author Dr. Jared Benge, associate professor in the department of neurology at the University of Texas at Austin’s Dell Medical School, said via email to CNN Health.
While technology use was generally linked with a lower risk of cognitive decline, the findings for social media use were inconsistent, the authors said. Monitoring screentime could still be a healthy choice.
