We have known for a long time that cognitive decline occurs with aging, however we may have been incorrect about the age it starts. A recent analysis brings new details about it. The study, led by Dr. Singh-Manoux and published in the British Medical Journal was conducted on 7390 persons among them 5198 men and 2192 women. The objective was to estimate the decline in cognitive functions over a 10 year period. Participants were tested on their memory, reasoning skills, vocabulary and phonemic and semantic fluency three times over this period.
In everyone of the five age categories (45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64 and 65-70), the results showed a decline in all skills except in vocabulary.
The results of the sudy suggest that the decline in cognitive functions begins around the age of 45, however it does not specify if the outcome is linked to dementia. Still, more studies are necessary to confirm those results.
Source:
or British Medical Journal