The pandemic has caused ongoing damage to the brain health of people aged 50 and over, rapidly impairing cognitive abilities (skills needed to acquire knowledge, process information and reason) regardless of whether they were infected with Covid or not , researchers have discovered.
Health experts are learning more about the effects of the biggest public health crisis in a century. A study has found that cognitive function and memory in the elderly declined more rapidly during the first year of the pandemic between March 2020 and February 2021, even if they had not been infected with the virus.
Acceleration of cognitive abilities has been worsened by a number of factors since the Covid outbreak, the researchers said. These included loneliness and depression, lack of physical activity and higher alcohol consumption, as well as the effects of the disease itself.
The data suggests that the lockdowns and other restrictions we've experienced during the pandemic have had a truly lasting impact on brain health in people aged 50 and over, even after the easing of anti-Covid restrictions.
The researchers said it is necessary for policymakers to consider the health impacts when planning how to respond to future pandemics.
The study, led by the University of Exeter and King's College London, was published in the journal Lancet Healthy Longevity.
