Cognitive function maintained among elderly who feel good about life: study

CHICAGO, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Feeling happy about life slowed the cognitive decline among older adults in China, a new 12-year study suggested.

Data came from a subset of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The sample included nearly 9,500 respondents aged 60 and older without any cognitive impairments at baseline of 2002. The respondents were interviewed five times between 2002 and 2014.

About 2,640 respondents had onset of cognitive impairment at one of the follow-up interviews, and the numbers slightly increased over time, from nearly 11 percent during the 2002-2005 interval to 13.3 percent in the 2011-2014 interval.

To assess psychological well-being, respondents answered questions about their optimism, conscientiousness, loneliness, self-esteem and other factors. They also disclosed what social support they received, such as visits from family and friends, as well as their health status.

The researchers found that the odds of developing cognitive impairment, such as dementia, were lower in those with better psychological well-being.

Knowing more about cognitive impairment is an important public health issue in an aging society, said Lydia Li, professor of social work at the University of Michigan (UM) and the study's co-author.

"The findings have implications for policy and practice regarding supporting older people to preserve cognitive function in older age, given that psychological well-being is modifiable," she said.

In addition, enhancing the psychological well-being of older adults not only improves their quality of life, but may also lessen the burden and cost associated with cognitive impairment, Li said.

The findings, posted on UM's website on Tuesday, have been published in the Journal of Aging and Health.