Couldn't resist.
Posted on 04/14/2025 3:06:43 PM PDT by nickcarraway
new study led by researchers at Florida State University somewhat shockingly suggests that married people are more likely to develop dementia.
Would you believe me if I told you that staying single or ending your marriage could lower your odds of getting dementia?
A 2019 study from America found that unmarried people had “significantly higher odds of developing dementia over the study period than their married counterparts”.
Indeed, married people are generally thought to have better health. Studies have shown that they are at reduced risk of having heart disease and stroke and they tend to live longer. So why did the new study come up with this surprising finding? Let’s take a closer look.
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The researchers analysed data from more than 24,000 Americans without dementia at the start of the study. Participants were tracked for up to 18 years. Crucially, the team compared dementia rates across marital groups: married, divorced, widowed and never-married.
At first, it looked as though all three unmarried groups had a reduced risk of dementia compared with the married group. But, after accounting for other factors that could influence the results such as smoking and depression, only divorced and never-married people had a lower risk of dementia.
Differences were also seen depending on the type of dementia. For example, being unmarried was consistently linked with a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia. But it was not shown for vascular dementia – a rarer form of the condition.
The researchers also found that divorced or never-married people were less likely to progress from mild cognitive impairment to dementia and that people who became widowed during the study had a lower risk of dementia.
Possible explanations of the link between marriage and dementia Married people might be diagnosed earlier because they have spouses who notice memory problems and push for a doctor’s visit. This could make dementia look more common in married people – even if it’s not.
This is called ascertainment bias — when data is skewed because of who gets diagnosed or noticed more easily. However, the evidence of this was not strong. All participants had annual visits from a doctor, who could be thought of as a proxy partner who would spot early signs of dementia in the participant.
Perhaps it was the case that the sample of people used, from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center (NACC) study, was not representative of the wider population. Specifically, the sample showed low levels of ethnic and income diversity. Also, nearly 64 percent of the participants were married. This may affect how these unexpected findings translate to the wider world. They could just have been unique to NACC participants.
However, it is more likely that these findings highlight just how complex the effects of marital disruptions, transitions and choices on brain health really are. Being married is by no means an established protective factor for dementia, with an earlier meta-analysis (a study of studies) showing mixed results.
The new study from Florida State University uses one of the biggest samples to date to examine this issue, and carries a good deal of weight. It highlights that assumptions based on previous research that widowhood and divorce are very stressful life events that can trigger Alzheimer’s disease or that unmarried people are socially isolated and therefore may be at higher risk of dementia, may not always be correct.
Relationship dynamics are by no means straightforward. As mentioned in the paper, such dynamics may “provide a more nuanced understanding than a simple binary effect”. Factors such as marriage quality, levels of satisfaction after divorce, cultural considerations, or the sociability of single people compared with coupled ones may help explain these seemingly contradictory results.
This study challenges the idea that marriage is automatically good for brain health. Instead, it suggests the effect of relationships on dementia is far more complex. What matters might not be your relationship status but how supported, connected and fulfilled you feel.
Avinash Chandra is a Postdoctoral Researcher, Neurology, Queen Mary University of London.
Why do women live longer than men?
Because they want to.
The two men that I know, who have it now, are still happily married and both are in the late 80s.
Both women died long ago. The men and their wives and children are dealing with this right now.
I haven't carried out any studies, I'm just posting about what I know.
Usually I don’t waste time reading articles.
Marriage Linked to Increased Risk of Dementia, New Study Finds
= = =
Who needs a New Study
I read the entire article; that’s one of the reasons I called this study GARBAGE!
Couldn't resist.
“new study led by researchers at Florida State University somewhat shockingly suggests that married people are more likely to develop dementia.
Would you believe me if I told you that staying single or ending your marriage could lower your odds of getting dementia?
A 2019 study from America found that unmarried people had “significantly higher odds of developing dementia over the study period than their married counterparts”.”
Don’t those sentences say just the opposite of each other !!!
“Yes they will, unless you are hermit and live in a cave.”
Dave must have had dementia since he was okay with keeping a dead whore in his cave.
“That’s because we’re driving each other CRAAAAAAZY!!!”
My wife and I are in our mid 80’s, and we are amazed at how often one person in a marriage tries to control their spouses.
A very intelligent man just died. He and his over controlling spouse had been married or 60+ years. We know of another couple with the same control issues in their soon to be over marriage.
Married people rely on someone else to do certain tasks while a single person has to do it all. I see that with my marriage. We certainly don’t do each task but divide them up. I definitely see married people getting Alzheimer’s more frequently. To be fair, the singles I do know are widowed so not sure how the study would rate their chances.
Do I have to Guess Who that was?
Does the study cover blood pressure?
Henny Youngman joke:
Why do married men die first?
They want to.
I haven’t read the entire thread, but I would suspect someone has mentioned that a married person is more likely to be diagnosed with dementia because they have someone close to them.
There is someone who sees them everyday and gets them to the doctor once they first notice the sign and symptoms of the disease. Therefore, there are more diagnoses earlier in life for married people.
The study might not have included that data. Without actually seeing the study it is impossible to rank it. But I suspect that it is bogus. Like most studies
Don’t those sentences say just the opposite of each other !!!
= = =
No, you just can’t understand because of your dementia.
Of of the men, whom I know, who has dementia, has been happily married to the same woman for over 60 years and the other one, had been happily married to the same woman for 50.
Both men are in their late 80s. Both are Conseratives, as are their wives and adult children.
Heck, I don’t worry about my wife giving me dementia, I’m more concerned about the baseball bats.
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