Leisure activities and the risk of dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis Summary Goals: Leisure activities are major components of healthy, modifiable lifestyles and are proposed to help prevent the development of dementia. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of different types of leisure activities, including cognitive, physical and social activities, on the incidence of all-cause dementia (ACD), Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and vascular dementia (YOU). Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of Cochrane, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases to identify longitudinal studies examining associations between leisure activities and dementia. Relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were pooled using random-effects meta-analysis. Subgroup analyzes were used to estimate potential effect modifiers. The study was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42019116857). Results: A total of 38 longitudinal studies were included in the meta-analysis, with 2154818 participants at baseline, 74700 ACD cases, 2848 AD cases and 1423 VD cases during follow-up. Subgroup analyzes showed that physical (RR = 0.83, 95% CI: [0.78-0.88]), cognitive (RR = 0.77 [0.68-0.87]), and social (RR = 0.93 [0.87-0.99]) were inversely associated with incidence of ACD. Furthermore, physical (RR = 0.87 [0.78-0.96]) and cognitive activities (RR = 0.66 [0.52-0.85]) were associated with a reduced risk of AD. Physical activity (RR = 0.67 [0.53-0.85]) was associated with a lower incidence of DV. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that leisure activities are inversely associated with the risk of ACD, AD, and DV. |
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Leisure activities, such as reading a book, doing yoga and spending time with family and friends , may help reduce the risk of dementia, according to a new meta-analysis published in Neurology® , the medical journal of the American Academy of Medicine. Neurology. The meta-analysis reviewed available studies on the effects of cognitive activities, physical activities, and social activities and the risk of dementia.
"Previous studies have shown that leisure activities were associated with several health benefits, such as a lower risk of cancer, a reduction in atrial fibrillation, and a person’s perception of their own well-being," said the study’s author, Lin Lu, PhD, from Beijing. Sixth University Hospital in Beijing, China. “However, there is conflicting evidence about the role of leisure activities in preventing dementia. "Our research found that leisure activities such as doing crafts, playing sports or volunteering were linked to a lower risk of dementia."
The meta-analysis involved a review of 38 studies from around the world involving a total of more than 2 million people who did not have dementia. Participants were followed for at least three years.
Participants provided information about their leisure activities through questionnaires or interviews. Leisure activities were defined as those in which people engage for pleasure or well-being and were divided into mental, physical and social activities.
During the studies, 74,700 people developed dementia. After adjusting for factors such as age, sex and education, the researchers found that overall leisure activities were linked to a lower risk of dementia. Those who participated in leisure activities had a 17% lower risk of developing dementia than those who did not participate in leisure activities.
Mental activity consisted mainly of intellectual activities and included reading or writing for pleasure, watching television, listening to the radio, playing games or musical instruments, using a computer, and doing crafts . Researchers found that people who participated in these activities had a 23% lower risk of dementia.
Physical activities included walking , running, swimming, cycling, using exercise machines, playing sports, yoga, and dancing . Researchers found that people who participated in these activities had a 17% lower risk of dementia.
Social activities primarily referred to activities that involved communicating with others and included attending a class, joining a social club, volunteering, visiting family or friends, or attending religious activities . The researchers found that people who participated in these activities had a 7% lower risk of dementia.
"This meta-analysis suggests that there are benefits to being active , and there are many activities that are easy to incorporate into daily life and that may be beneficial for the brain," Lu said. “Our research found that leisure activities can reduce the risk of dementia. "Future studies should include larger sample sizes and longer follow-up time to reveal more links between leisure activities and dementia."
A limitation of the study was that people reported their own physical and mental activity, so they may not have remembered or reported the activities correctly.
The study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China, the Chinese Association of Science and Technology and the PKU-Baidu Fund.
