Vňuková, M;
Richards, M;
Cadar, D;
(2017)
How Do Our Decisions to Smoke and Drink in Midlife Affect Our Cognitive Performance in Later Life? Findings from the 1946 British Birth Cohort.
Journal of Aging and Geriatric Medicine
(In press).
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Abstract
Background: There is a not a clear understanding of the potential time-period windows for lifestyle interventions. This study examined how smoking and harmful drinking across early midlife affect cognitive performance in later life. Methods: Data is from Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD). Cognitive abilities were measured at age 60-64. Information about alcohol consumption was collected via food diaries at multiple time points across life (ages 36, 43, 53 and 60-64). Information about smoking was collected via interviews and questionnaires at ages 20, 25, 31, 36, 43, 53 and 60- 64. Multivariable logistic regression was used, adjusting for gender, childhood cognition at age 8, education and socioeconomic status. Findings: Drinking in moderation across midlife appears to be protective against poor memory in later life (OR=0.86, 95% CI (0.63-1.16)). In contrast, harmful drinking at 43 and 53 years was associated with higher odds of poor memory (OR=1.36, 95% CI (0.79-2.33)), (OR=1.26, 95% CI (0.65-2.43)). Drinking heavily, particularly at age 43, was also associated with higher odds of slow search speed at the same age (OR=1.66, 95% CI (1.01-2.76)). An increase in the number of smoking pack-years was associated with low memory (OR=2.17, 95% CI (1.33-3.54)) and slow search speed (OR=1.65, 95% CI (1.03-2.64)). Interpretation: These results may be suggesting that intervention may be more beneficial in the decades preceding clinical the manifestation of neuropathological burden.
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