Social engagement and brain structure‐informed cognitive domain trajectories in older adults: The National Health and Aging Trends Study
Cynthia Felix, Mary Louise Pomeroy, Tyler Bell, Felix Joy Kollasserry, Jeanine M. Parisi, Steven M. Albert, Thomas CudjoeAbstract
INTRODUCTION
Cognitive decline may emerge in specific domains before overt dementia, yet domain‐specific cognitive benefits of social engagement remain unclear.
METHODS
Using National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) data (2011–2019) from 6,084 community‐dwelling Medicare beneficiaries, including the oldest‐old, we study associations between our social engagement index founded on neural correlates of social cognition and longitudinal memory, orientation and executive function trajectories.
RESULTS
Baseline social engagement index was 5.04 (SD: 1.90). Cognitive performance decreased as a function of time. Higher baseline social engagement was associated with attenuation of aging effects in memory ( β = 0.14; p < 0.001), orientation ( β = 0.14; p < 0.001), and executive function ( β = 0.05; p < 0.001) after 8 years. Higher quartiles of social engagement, indicating broader endorsement of multiple activities, provided incrementally greater cognitive benefits in all domains.
DISCUSSION
Higher baseline social engagement among community‐dwelling older adults shows incremental and sustained benefits in memory, orientation and executive functions.