Key points from article :
This study of more than 100,000 participants suggests that people with cognitively stimulating jobs have a lower risk of dementia in old age than those with non-stimulating jobs.
Scientists looked at participants for an average of 17 years across studies from the UK, Europe and the US.
They focused on links between work-related factors and chronic disease, disability and mortality.
They found that the incidence of dementia was 4.8 per 10,000 person in the high stimulation group and was 7.3 in the low stimulation group.
There was an indication that the association was stronger for Alzheimer’s disease than other dementias.
Lead author Prof Mika Kivimäki, from University College London said: “Our findings support the hypothesis that mental stimulation in adulthood may postpone the onset of dementia by about one and half years.”
Dr Sara Imarisio said “This new research also identified proteins in people’s blood plasma that may be connected to this process.”
This study was published in the BMJ journal.
