Summary

Background:Since limited, specific assessments of social environments have previously been used, with the effect of a change in social interaction proving rare in previous studies, this study sought to clarify the specific association between changes in social interaction and symptoms of dementia.

Methods:The participants were elderly people, aged > 60 years, from a suburban community. All the participants formed part of the investigation from 2008 to 2011. The Index of Social Interaction was used to measure social interaction among elderly people. Data of dementia were obtained from Health and Welfare Center of local government. The chi-square test and a logistical regression analysis were used to examine the relationship between changes in social interaction and dementia.

Results:There were 321 participants without missing data. The results showed that “reading newspapers” was a positive change in social interaction in relation to the risk of dementia (odds ratio = 3.45, confidence interval: 1.04–۱۱٫۴۵).

Conclusion:This study focused on changes in social interaction and found that a positive change could help prevent dementia. Specifically, this study indicated that elderly people’s engagement with the social environment and in intellectual activities would prevent dementia.

Introduction

Since health is defined as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being , successful aging is given greater consideration on “health and disease” or “physical, mental, and social activity.”  Besides avoidance of disease and disability, successful aging includes maintenance of high physical and valid cognitive function, productive activities, and engagements with social interaction . Prevention of cognitive decline is very important for successful aging . However, elderly people’s cognitive function declines with advancing age; this is a pervasive issue in gerontology .

In order to prevent dementia, by delaying a decline in cognitive function, it is necessary to study the environmental factors related to dementia. For example, Suzuki pointed out that cognitive function among humans does not just decline with advancing age, but can also be improved by their experiences in environmental contexts. Moreover, Park and Bischof demonstrated that engagements in environments that require sustained cognitive efforts may facilitate cognitive function. Hertzog et al found that environmental contexts can enhance the development of cognitive function for humans both in adulthood and in old age