People who say their lives have a purpose are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease or its precursor, mild cognitive impairment.
Emerging data suggests that psychological factors are associated with the risk of Alzheimer's disease, but the association of purpose in life with the incidence of Alzheimer's is not known.
To look at the positive aspects of life and their possible effect on keeping dementia at bay, reserachers collected data on 951 older people without dementia who participated in the Rush Memory and Aging Project. The participants were asked to respond to statements such as: "I feel good when I think of what I have done in the past and what I hope to do in the future," and "I have a sense of direction and purpose in life."
After follow-up for nearly 4 years, over 16 percent of the people in the study developed Alzheimer's disease. Taking into account other factors that could account for Alzheimer's, it was found that people who responded most positively to statements about their lives were the least likely to develop the condition. Also, people who said they had more purposeful lives were less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment and had a slower rate of mental decline. People who scored 4.2 out of 5 on the purpose-in-life measure were about 2.4 times less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, compared with people who scored 3.0. The researchers did not ascertain a biological reason for this finding.
The above findings show that more social and physical activity along with higher purpose in life are linked with longer life and lesser disability as well as chances of dying.
Emerging data suggests that psychological factors are associated with the risk of Alzheimer's disease, but the association of purpose in life with the incidence of Alzheimer's is not known.
To look at the positive aspects of life and their possible effect on keeping dementia at bay, reserachers collected data on 951 older people without dementia who participated in the Rush Memory and Aging Project. The participants were asked to respond to statements such as: "I feel good when I think of what I have done in the past and what I hope to do in the future," and "I have a sense of direction and purpose in life."
After follow-up for nearly 4 years, over 16 percent of the people in the study developed Alzheimer's disease. Taking into account other factors that could account for Alzheimer's, it was found that people who responded most positively to statements about their lives were the least likely to develop the condition. Also, people who said they had more purposeful lives were less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment and had a slower rate of mental decline. People who scored 4.2 out of 5 on the purpose-in-life measure were about 2.4 times less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, compared with people who scored 3.0. The researchers did not ascertain a biological reason for this finding.
The above findings show that more social and physical activity along with higher purpose in life are linked with longer life and lesser disability as well as chances of dying.