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BackLong-term financial distress linked to cognitive performance in midlife and brain aging in later life, long-term UK study finds
Long-term financial distress linked to cognitive performance in midlife and brain aging in later life, long-term UK study finds
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自由时报1 hour agoHealth2 min readChinaView original

Long-term financial distress linked to cognitive performance in midlife and brain aging in later life, long-term UK study finds

financial distresscognitive performancebrain aging

Quick Look

  • A team from University College London in the United Kingdom tracked 2,759 adults from the generation born in 1946 and found that those who continued to face low income or financial difficulties as adults had poorer cognitive performance in middle age.
  • Brain MRI showed larger ventricular volume when they were about 70 years old.
  • Even after controlling for childhood cognition, education, and family background, the association still exists, especially among men, those with poor socioeconomic conditions in childhood, and those who carry the APOE-ε4 gene.

AI-generated summary

Why It Matters

The study followed adults from the generation born in 1946 in the United Kingdom, monitoring family income and financial distress from early adulthood, and conducting cognitive tests at age 53 and brain MRI scans from ages 69 to 71 to observe the association between adult financial status, midlife cognition, and brain structure in later life.

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2026/09/09 13:58

Research finds that persistent financial distress in adulthood is associated with midlife cognitive performance and brain structural changes in later life; diagram. (Taken from Freepik)

[Compiled by Chen Chengliang/Comprehensive Report] Worrying about money for a long time may not only affect the quality of life, but may even be related to brain aging decades later. The latest long-term human study in the UK found that people who continue to face low income or financial difficulties as adults have poorer cognitive performance in middle age. By the age of about 70, their brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) also shows more obvious aging-related changes.

The science and technology news website "ScienceDaily" reported that this study conducted by a team from University College London (UCL) in the United Kingdom analyzed long-term data of 2,759 adults in the "British 1946 birth generation". The research results were published in the geriatric medicine journal "Innovation in Aging" (Innovation in Aging).

Please read on...

The research team tracked the family income and financial difficulties of the subjects from their early adulthood, and conducted cognitive tests such as verbal memory and information processing speed at the age of 53. More than 400 subjects received brain MRI scans when they were 69 to 71 years old, allowing the researchers to observe the relationship between adult financial status, cognitive performance in middle age and brain structure in later life.

The study found that about 1 in 6 people belongs to the persistent low-income group, and about 1 in 8 people face long-term financial difficulties. People who have been under chronic financial stress performed worse on cognitive tests at age 53, and by age 70 or so, MRI showed larger ventricular volumes. Ventriculomegaly is often associated with surrounding brain tissue atrophy and can be used as a structural indicator of brain aging.

Even when factors such as childhood cognitive ability, education, and socioeconomic background of the family of origin are taken into account, the association between long-term financial distress and differences in cognition and brain imaging remains.

The relationship between men and those with this gene is more obvious

Further analysis found that the association between long-term financial distress and brain aging indicators was more pronounced among men, those with poor socioeconomic conditions in childhood, and those with the Alzheimer's disease risk gene "APOE-ε4". Researchers believe that long-term financial stress may be linked to later cognitive and brain health through chronic psychological stress, living conditions and other health factors.

However, this study is a long-term observational study, and what was found was the relationship between financial status, cognition, and brain structure. It cannot directly prove that "worrying about money will cause brain aging," nor can it be inferred that poverty will directly cause dementia.

The research team pointed out that the value of this study lies in tracking it from early adulthood to late life, showing that long-term accumulated socioeconomic stress may be related to brain health decades later.

Open Questions

  • How does financial distress affect brain structure through specific physiological mechanisms?
  • Can intervening in financial stress slow or reverse related brain changes?
  • What is the strength of the association among women and those who do not carry the APOE-ε4 gene?

Related Topics

financial distress
PeopleChen Chengliang
OrganizationsUniversity College London (UCL)ScienceDailyInnovation in Aging
PlacesUnited KingdomUniversity College London
Topicscognitive performancebrain agingMRIlong term studyBritish generation born in 1946APOE-ε4
This article was originally published by 自由时报.

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