JAKARTA - The problem of money that has not been resolved has turned out to not only drain the mind. A new study links long-term financial difficulties with faster brain aging, especially in certain groups that are more vulnerable.
The Independent, quoted Saturday, July 25, reported that the findings came from a study by experts at University College London or UCL. They analyzed data on 2,759 people in the UK and published their results in the journal Innovations in Aging.
The impact is said to be stronger in men, people who grow up in less fortunate families, and those who have a greater genetic risk of Alzheimer's disease.
The researchers assessed support for people facing financial stress and reducing chronic poverty could help prevent future cases of dementia.
Dementia is a decline in brain function that affects memory, thinking, and the ability to carry out daily activities. Alzheimer's is one of the most common causes of dementia.
Research data was taken from participants in the MRC National Survey of Health and Development, or the 1946 British cohort study. In the study, participants' household income was recorded when they were 26, 43, and 53 years old.
Cohort studies are studies that follow a group of people over the long term to see changes or health risks over time.
Participants are classified as having low income if they are in the bottom 20 percent at least twice. This group includes about one in six participants.
Financial difficulties in the study include difficult conditions in managing income or difficulty paying bills.
The results showed that people who experienced money problems or poverty continuously in early and mid-adulthood had worse results in cognitive tests at age 53.
Cognitive tests are used to assess thinking, remembering, understanding, and decision-making abilities.
In participants who underwent brain scans, the analysis showed those with lower incomes had worse brain health at 69 to 71 years of age.
The relationship was stronger in men, people who had poorer childhoods, and people with genetic variants that increase the risk of Alzheimer's.
Dr Jacques Wels from UCL's lifelong health and ageing unit said many studies on cognitive ageing only looked at financial difficulties at one time.
"Our study using decades of data allows us to see that it is the accumulation of difficulties over the years that is associated with the worst cognitive health outcomes, not the occasional episode of difficulty," said Wels.
Cognitive aging is a change in the ability to think, remember, and process information as you get older.
According to the study, this relationship may occur because financial problems take up the capacity of the brain used for attention and decision-making.
People who continue to face financial pressures as adults can experience chronic stress on the systems involved in cognitive processing. In the long term, this condition can be related to impaired thinking functions.
The Independent's report also said that these findings emerged at a time when the cost of living crisis was making more and more households report financial difficulties.
Professor Praveetha Patalay, also from UCL, said support for people facing financial pressures was not only socially important, but also related to brain health.
"Our findings suggest that supporting people who face financial difficulties and reducing chronic poverty can also help prevent cognitive decline and future cases of dementia," said Patalay.
Dr Richard Oakley, associate director of research and innovation at the Alzheimer's Society, said the study showed dementia was not just a health issue.
"This study reminds us that dementia is not just a health problem, but also a social and economic problem," said Oakley.
According to Oakley, growing evidence suggests that factors that shape brain health emerge long before symptoms of dementia are visible.
He said there was no guaranteed way to prevent dementia. However, research shows that about 45 percent of cases globally can potentially be delayed or prevented by addressing modifiable risk factors.
Oakley assessed that efforts to reduce the risk of dementia also need to address inequalities that affect brain health.
He said dementia is the biggest killer in Britain, but it is not treated as a public health issue as it should be.
According to Oakley, the number of people affected by dementia can only be suppressed if the risk factors are addressed and everyone has access to support after diagnosis.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
