Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
J Aging Health. 2024 Mar;36(3-4):230-245. doi: 10.1177/08982643231184593. Epub 2023 Jun 19.
Cognitive aging is a lifelong process with implications for Alzheimer's disease and dementia. This study aims to fill major gaps in research on the natural history of and social disparities in aging-related cognitive decline over the life span. We conducted integrative data analysis of four large U.S. population-based longitudinal studies of individuals aged 12 to 105 followed over two decades and modeled age trajectories of cognitive function in multiple domains. We found evidence for the onset of cognitive decline in the 4 decade of life, varying gender differences with age, and persistent disadvantage among non-Hispanic Blacks, Hispanics, and those without college education. We further found improvement in cognitive function across 20 century birth cohorts but widening social inequalities in more recent cohorts. These findings advance an understanding of early life origins of dementia risk and invite future research on strategies for promoting cognitive health for all Americans.
认知衰老（Cognitive aging）是一个贯穿一生的过程，会对阿尔茨海默病和痴呆产生影响。本研究旨在填补关于衰老相关认知衰退的自然史和社会差异的研究中的重大空白。我们对四项美国基于人群的、针对年龄在 12 至 105 岁的个体的、为期 20 年的纵向研究进行了综合数据分析，并对多个领域的认知功能的年龄轨迹进行了建模。我们发现，认知衰退始于人生的第四个十年，且随年龄变化存在性别差异，非裔美国人、西班牙裔和未接受过大学教育的人始终处于劣势地位。我们还发现，20 世纪出生的人群认知功能有所改善，但最近几代人的社会不平等程度在扩大。这些发现增进了对痴呆风险的生命早期起源的理解，并邀请未来开展研究，以制定促进所有美国人认知健康的策略。
