2023-12-27 18:23:45
Is a dog man’s best friend? The definition seems to be spot on even when tested by science. And it could be extended to pets in general, if what a new study just published in ‘Jama Network Open’ suggests is confirmed: namely that, if you are over 50 and live alone, a pet saves your memory. In practice it has the anti-loneliness effect of friends. So much so that the association with slower rates of cognitive decline is observed in the case of single pet owners and not for the over 50s who live with other people. “Further studies are needed” to evaluate whether having a dog or cat at your side ‘mitigates’ the loneliness effect and the link with the loss of mental functioning, the authors highlight. But, in the meantime, an indication emerges from the work that goes in this direction. It was signed by scientists from the School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China.
The authors analyzed data from a cohort of 7,945 over 50s and found that having a pet at home is associated with slower rates of decline in memory and verbal fluency. The data examined are those of the English Longitudinal Study of Aging, in the periods June 2010-July 2011 and June 2018-July 2019. Average age of the participants: 66.3 years. Over 4,400 were women. The tests showed that living alone was a significant ‘modifier’ element and that the presence of a pet seemed to slow down the decline in the functions taken into consideration. While joint association analyzes showed no significant differences in rates of decline in composite verbal cognition, verbal memory, or verbal fluency between pet owners living alone and pet owners living with others. So it is possible, the authors conclude, that owning a pet somewhat offsets the association between living alone and cognitive decline in older people.
With aging societies, the deterioration of cognitive functions after a certain age is emerging as a major public health problem, experts highlight. It is estimated – they recall – that the number of people affected by dementia worldwide will increase from 57 million in 2019 to 153 million in 2050. Identifying high-risk populations and modifiable risk factors is “fundamental for formulating public health interventions and promote healthy ageing”.
Not being totally alone and enjoying the friendship of a pet could be one of the elements to consider. Even more so in light of the most recent data. Just to name a few: In 2021, the percentage of single-person households in the UK and US reached 29.4% and 28.5% respectively. And a recent meta-analysis of 12 studies reported that older adults who live alone are at high risk of developing dementia.
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