Lower risk of dementia for married or cohabiting people

People who live alone have twice the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease in later life compared with married or cohabiting people.

Researchers have some good news for people who are married, a report recently releases says being married protects you against Alzheimer's in later life. In addition, those who have a partner in middle age are at half the risk of developing dementia as those who live alone. The loss of a partner in mid-life raises the risk three-fold. The research study was led by Miia Kivipelto from Karolinska Institutet and published on the prominent British Medical Journal's website. The team interviewed 2,000 people aged 50 on average and then again 21 years later. The study's conclusions were based upon the reports from three quarters of those initially involved. Middle-aged people, who live alone, have double the risk of dementia compared with those who are married or have a partner. Those living alone in middle-age and who are widowed or divorced have the highest chances of developing dementia. As life expectancy increases in various regions of the world, dementia is becoming a growing health concern. In 2005 an estimated 25 million people had dementia, and the number is expected to reach 81.1 million by 2040.