Moderate Internet Use May Delay Cognitive Decline in Older Adults
Researchers have unearthed intriguing insights suggesting that consistent and moderate use of the internet may yield cognitive advantages for older individuals.
This investigation, disclosed in the August edition of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, indeed uncovered a noteworthy correlation between prolonged internet engagement in late adulthood and the postponement of cognitive decline.
Nevertheless, the scholars behind this study, hailing from NYU’s School of Global Public Health, have wisely cautioned that further research is imperative to fathom the potential adverse repercussions of excessive internet indulgence.
To unravel these findings, the research team meticulously tracked adults aged between 50 and 65 who remained free from dementia for slightly over 17 years. They harnessed the comprehensive data of the University of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study, a longitudinal survey encompassing information about 20,000 elderly American adults.
During the period from 2002 to 2018, the stewards of the Michigan study conducted biennial surveys among the participants. They probed into their engagement in “regular” internet activities and quantified the depth of their online interactions.
The responses were quite diverse, with 65 percent of the participants affirming their status as regular internet users, while 21 percent disclosed significant fluctuations in their online habits throughout the study’s duration. Regrettably, some participants either passed away or succumbed to dementia during this period.
The study’s outcomes were truly illuminating. It unveiled that “regular internet usage was linked with approximately half the risk of dementia compared to irregular usage.”
Among those who ardently embraced the digital realm, the authors of this novel study pinpointed a mere 1.54 percent risk of dementia. Conversely, individuals who abstained from online pursuits appeared to face a notably higher risk, standing at 10.45 percent.
However, the researchers were astute in highlighting a crucial caveat. An observable connection emerged between excessive internet usage and the likelihood of dementia development.
The peril appeared to escalate among those who devoted more than two hours daily to online activities.
One of the researchers, Gawon Cho, imparted to Medscape Medical News, “Among the elderly, those who regularly surf the internet may encounter a diminished dementia risk in comparison to their infrequent counterparts. Yet, prolonged daily internet immersion may potentially exacerbate the dementia risk among older adults.”
The study does mention that “the most favourable risk outcomes were observed among adults who allocated 0.1 to 2 hours for internet usage, although these estimates bore no statistical significance due to relatively modest sample sizes.”
