Daily Internet use may reduce the risk of developing dementia, according to a study from New York University.
- A study has shown that regular internet use could protect against dementia.
- Regular internet use was associated with about half the risk of dementia compared to non-regular use. This link was found regardless of participants’ level of education, ethnicity, gender and generation.
- But beware, excessive use of the internet can also have negative effects on physical and cognitive health.
Do your loved ones regularly criticize you for spending too much time on the internet? Here is a strong argument to defend your favorite occupation: a study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society May 3, 2023, shows that surfing the internet often reduces the risk of dementia.
Dementia: internet use helps fight cognitive decline
For their work, the researchers from across the Atlantic followed 18,154 adults aged between 50 and 64.9 years for a maximum period of 17 years with a median of 7.9 years. They noted their internet use as well as signs of cognitive decline. Data analysis shows that daily surfing the web is associated with a 50% reduction in dementia risk. Additionally, netizens had higher cognitive test scores.
“The lowest risk was observed in adults with 0.1 to 2 hours of use, although estimates were not significant due to small sample sizes”, write the authors. They add that the link between the use of the web and the prevention of dementia was observed independently of the level of education, ethnicity, gender and generation of the participants.
The Internet would preserve the cognitive reserve of seniors
In view of the results obtained, one of the authors of the study, Dr. Virginia W. Chang of New York University, believes that the Internet could become a tool for preventing dementia. “Online engagement may help build and maintain cognitive reserve, which in turn may offset brain aging and reduce dementia risk”she explained in a communicated.
However, the scientist and her colleagues recognize that excessive use of the web can also have negative effects on the physical and cognitive health of seniors: physical inactivity, loneliness, anxiety…
“Since a person can have very different activities on the internet, future research should identify the patterns of web use associated with a cognitively healthy lifespan and identify the potential side effects of excessive use”they conclude in their article.
