%0 Journal Article
%@ 2045-2322
%A Fancourt, D
%A Steptoe, A
%D 2019
%F discovery:10070137
%I NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
%J Scientific Reports
%K Science & Technology, Multidisciplinary Sciences, Science & Technology - Other Topics, WATCHING TELEVISION, ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE, PHYSICAL-ACTIVITY, BRAIN-ACTIVITY, ASSOCIATIONS, DEMENTIA, MEMORY, RISK, LIFE, HIPPOCAMPUS
%T Television viewing and cognitive decline in older age: findings from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
%U https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10070137/
%V 9
%X There has been significant interest in the effects of television on cognition in children, but much less  research has been carried out into the effects in older adults. This study aimed to explore whether  television viewing behaviours in adults aged 50 or over are associated with a decline in cognition.  Using data from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging involving 3,662 adults aged 50+, we used  multivariate linear regression models to explore longitudinal associations between baseline television  watching (2008/2009) and cognition 6 years later (2014/2015) while controlling for demographic factors,  socio-economic status, depression, physical health, health behaviours and a range of other sedentary  behaviours. Watching television for more than 3.5 hours per day is associated with a dose-response  decline in verbal memory over the following six years, independent of confounding variables. These  results are found in particular amongst those with better cognition at baseline and are robust to a range  of sensitivity analyses exploring reverse causality, differential non-response and stability of television  viewing. Watching television is not longitudinally associated with changes in semantic fluency. Overall  our results provide preliminary data to suggest that television viewing for more than 3.5 hours per day is  related to cognitive decline.
%Z This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images  or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license,  unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license,  users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this  license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/