Brain health of those 50 and above declined rapidly during the pandemic: Study

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic may have subsided, as the reported cases across the world are now lesser than what they used to be in 2020 and 2021, by its indirect impact on people is still very much evident. 

A new research, published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity, claimed to have found evidence which suggests a decline in brain health of those in or over 50s more rapidly during the pandemic. 

The major research has linked the pandemic to sustained cognitive decline as it claimed that such deterioration can be seen in those who even didn't have Covid. 

Researchers analysed the results they revived from computerised brain function tests from more than 3,000 participants of the online PROTECT study. All the respondents were based in the United Kingdom and were aged between 50 and 90. 

Also read: Ex-advisors slam Boris Johnson over handling of Covid pandemic during public hearing 

The Protect study was launched in 2014 to understand the details of brain function in the elderly for 25 years. 

The study suggests that during the first year of the Covid pandemic between March 2020 and February 2021, cognitive function and working memory in older adults declined faster. 

This happened even if they hadn't contracted the virus, and it continued in the next year as well, that is 2022. This trend suggests that the brain's health was impacted months after the initial lockdowns. 

The researchers wrote in the journal, "We found that people aged 50 years and older in the UK had accelerated decline in executive function and working memory during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, during which the UK was subjected to three societal lockdowns for a total period of six months." 

"Notably, however, this worsening in working memory persisted in the second year of the pandemic, after the social restrictions had eased. The scale of change is also of note, with all groups – the whole cohort and the individual subgroups – showing more than a 50% greater decline in working memory and executive function," they added. 

Also read: India's biggest data breach? Covid information of over 800 million people leaked 

Watch: Why are dengue cases rising rapidly in Mumbai? 

The study, led by the University of Exeter and King's College London, stated that several factors resulted in a decline in cognition. 

The factors could have been a rise in loneliness and depression, a reduction in exercise in lockdown, alcohol intake, and more. The ill effects of Covid could also be the reason as several studies have found that the deadly virus has a direct impact as well. 

As quoted by The Guardian, Anne Corbett, who is a professor in dementia research and the lead at Exeter for the Protect study, said that the findings of the study "raises the important question of whether people are at a potentially higher risk of cognitive decline, which can lead to dementia". 

Corbett added: "Our findings also highlight the need for policymakers to consider the wider health impacts of restrictions like lockdowns when planning for a future pandemic response."