Epidemiol Health.  2023;45(1):e2023098. 10.4178/epih.e2023098.

Age-specific findings on lifestyle and trajectories of cognitive function from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging

• lim S
• Yoo E
• Hong I
• Park JH

• KMID: 2552309
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2023098

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Few longitudinal studies have explored age-related differences in the relationship between lifestyle factors and cognitive decline. This study investigated lifestyle factors at baseline that slow the longitudinal rate of cognitive decline in young-old (55-64 years), middle-old (65-74 years), and old-old (75+ years) individuals.
METHODS
We conducted an 11-year follow-up that included 6,189 older adults from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, which is a cohort study of community-dwelling older Koreans. Lifestyle factors, including physical activity, social activity (SA), smoking, and alcohol consumption were assessed at baseline. Cognitive function was measured at 2-year intervals over 11 years. Latent growth modeling and multi-group analysis were performed.
RESULTS
The influence of lifestyle factors on the rate of cognitive decline differed by age. Smoking at baseline (-0.05; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.11 to -0.00, per study wave) accelerated cognitive decline in young-old individuals, whereas frequent participation in SA at baseline (0.02; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.03, per study wave) decelerated cognitive decline in middle-old individuals. None of the lifestyle factors in this study decelerated cognitive decline in old-old individuals.
CONCLUSIONS
Cognitive strategies based on modifiable lifestyle factors such as smoking cessation in young-old individuals and frequent SA participation in middle-old age individuals may have great potential for preventing cognitive decline. Because the influence of lifestyle factors varied by age group, age-specific approaches are recommended to promote cognitive health.

Keyword

Life style; Cognition; Longitudinal studies; Aging; Republic of Korea