Risk and protective factors for cognitive decline in older adults from a nationally representative sample in India: Results from the LASI‐DAD
Alden L. Gross, Emma Nichols, Miguel Arce Rentería, Pranali Y. Khobragade, Erik Meijer, Sarah Petrosyan, Mathew Varghese, Albert Weerman, Peifeng Hu, Joyita Banerjee, Sandy Chien, Marco Angrisani, Anushikha Dhankhar, Harrshita Vishwakarrma, Istikhar Ali, Ziqi Zhou, Rajeev Aravindakshan, Sankha Shubhra Chakrabarti, Madhumita Priyadarshini Das, Karishma De, Minakshi Dhar, Gevesh C. Dewangan, Monica Gupta, Umar Hafiz Khan, Vishakha Jain, John P. John, Ravi Kirti, Arun Kokane, Sarabmeet Singh Lehl, Rashmi R Mohanty, Vinay Pandit, Chhaya Rajguru, Durgesh Prasad Sahoo, Lalit Sankhe, M. Sukumar, Arunansu Talukdar, Venugopalan Gunasekaran, T. V. Sekher, David E. Bloom, Kenneth M. Langa, Palanimuthu T. Sivakumar, Mary Ganguli, Eileen M. Crimmins, Sharmistha Dey, Aparajit Ballav Dey, Jinkook LeeAbstract
INTRODUCTION
We characterized modifiable risk and protective factors for cognitive decline in India.
METHODS
Using the first nationally representative population‐based longitudinal sample of N = 6168 older adults in India, we evaluated associations of risk factors (demographic characteristics, self‐reported and objective health characteristics, health behaviors, and sensory function) for late‐life cognitive decline with up to 6.4 years of follow‐up (range: 2.8 to 6.4 years).
RESULTS
The mean rate of general cognitive decline was −0.029 SD per year and was progressively steeper with age. Most risk factors, particularly demographic and cardiovascular characteristics, were associated with steeper cognitive decline in expected directions: Associations of history of high cholesterol or heart attack on rate of cognitive decline, for example, were comparable to being 8 to 10 years older.
DISCUSSION
Most risk factors were associated with change in expected directions, highlighting the potential generalizability to India of previously identified risk factors for dementia.