Get married to avoid dementia, study suggests

Reaching middle age and being single can mean more than just having the house to yourself 8211; it might increase your risk of dementia.

Singles, beware! Reaching middle age can mean more than just having the house to yourself 8211; it might increase your risk of dementia. But being married halves the chance of developing Alzheimer8217;s disease, says a study.

A team at Karolinska Institute in Sweden has carried out the study and found the importance of close companionship in midlife 8211; and in fact, those who stay alone after divorce have a threefold risk of suffering Alzheimer8217;s in later life.

According to researchers, the study has highlighted a higher risk of developing memory and cognitive problems for all those who live alone, whether single, divorced or widowed 8211; the reason to a great extent being social isolation.

8220;Living in a couple relationship is normally one of the most intense forms of social and intellectual stimulation. If social and cognitive challenges protect against dementia, so should living as a couple.

8220;This study points to the beneficial effects of a married life, consistent with the general hypothesis of social stimulation as a protective factor against dementia,8221; lead researcher Krister Hakansson said.

The researchers came to the conclusion after looking at 1,449 people from a Finnish database, who were asked about their relationship status in mid-life, then revisited 21 years later to see if they had developed dementia, British newspaper the Daily Mail reported.

In total, 139 of them had some sort of cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer8217;s had been diagnosed in 48 of these. In fact, the team found that found those living with a partner in mid-life had a 50 per cent lower risk of having dementia in late-life compared to those living alone.

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Divorcees who remained single after a marriage split in mid-life had a tripled risk, they found.

Even after factors like obesity, cholesterol, blood pressure, smoking habits, depression, age and gender that may have an impact on dementia were adjusted for, the study showed people with partners as less prone to Alzheimer8217;s disease.