Working routine job could boost risk of cognitive impairment, dementia: study

The more your work challenges your brain, the better it may be for your future brain health.

That’s according to a new study in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, that suggests routine jobs that don’t make you think and learn new things could be linked to future cognitive impairment and even dementia. The study finds an association with later cognitive decline, although it doesn’t prove that stimulating work will stave it off.

“We examined the demands of various jobs and found that cognitive stimulation at work during different stages in life — during your 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s — was linked to a reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment after the age of 70,” study author Dr. Trine Holt Edwin, of Oslo University Hospital in Norway, said in a written statement. “Our findings highlight the value of having a job that requires more complex thinking as a way to possibly maintain memory and thinking in old age.”

The findings are based on data from 7,000 people and 305 occupations in Norway. The study participants were followed from their 30s until they retired in their 60s.

The first task was determining how much cognitive stimulation different jobs afforded workers, so the researchers broke tasks down into categories they called routine manual, routine cognitive, non-routine analytical and non-routine interpersonal tasks. Job tasks all to different degrees fit into those categories.

What’s routine, what’s not?

Per the release, “Routine manual tasks demand speed, control over equipment and often involve repetitive motions, typical of factory work. Routine cognitive tasks demand precision and accuracy of repetitive tasks, such as in bookkeeping and filing.”

The researchers noted that the non-routine analytical tasks included those parts of a job that require information analysis, creative thinking and interpreting data for other people. The non-routine interpersonal tasks include the need at work to establish and nurture personal relationships, coaching, supervising and motivating others. Examples of non-routine cognitive jobs, per the research, are public relations and computer programming.

Then they slotted participants into the categories, based on how cognitively demanding their jobs are.

Teaching was the most common profession in the group with high cognitive demands. Mail carriers and custodians were slotted into the low cognitive demand category.

The participants were given thinking and memory tests after age 70, the goal to detect any mild cognitive impairment, which experts say can but does not always progress to dementia. Of those whose jobs had low cognitive demands, 42% were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, compared to 27% of those who had cognitively demanding jobs.

Breaking up the routine

Edwin told CNN that years spent in school helped counter a repetitive job to a degree. “Attending college, for example, reduced the impact of a repetitive job by about 60% but didn’t fully negate the risk,” the article said.

“Staying actively engaged in life, maintaining a sense of purpose, learning new things and remaining socially active are powerful tools to protect against cognitive decline as we age,” Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of research at the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases in Florida, told CNN by email.

Isaacson, who was not part of the study, added that “being cognitively engaged at work can also have profound benefits in our fight against dementia.”

“These results indicate that both education and doing work that challenges your brain during your career play a crucial role in lowering the risk of cognitive impairment later in life,” Edwin said in the release. “Further research is required to pinpoint the specific cognitively challenging occupational tasks that are most beneficial for maintaining thinking and memory skills.”

The researchers noted confounding factors that could increase the risk of cognitive impairment or dementia, adjusting for them, including: age, sex, education, income, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, psychiatric challenges, hearing loss, loneliness, smoking and being sedentary.

The researchers also noted an unexpected but telling limitation to their findings: People with identical job titles could do different tasks and face very different cognitive demands.

Protect your brain as much as you can

Experts say there are a number of things that people can do to reduce their risk of cognitive decline. Exercise is often cited as vital to keep the brain functioning well and it’s a known fact that what’s good for the heart benefits the brain and vice versa.

As Deseret News reported of cognitive impairment and dementia in December, “There is no cure. But according to research, lifestyle changes make a big difference in cognitive health and in the risk of developing disease. Plus, changes that help the brain also help the heart and reduce deaths from other diseases, including certain cancers.”

Among them:

Manage your blood pressure. A study, led by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, said those with top (systolic) blood pressure of 120 or less were 19% less apt to develop mild cognitive impairment compared to those whose reading topped 140.

Notice and seek treatment for hearing loss. Johns Hopkins University researchers found those older adults who got hearing aids and hearing counseling for three years had half the cognitive decline of those who didn’t seek treatment for hearing loss.

Get your flu and pneumonia vaccine. University of Texas researchers found an annual flu shot associated with a 40% decrease in risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease within four years. Just one vaccine dropped the risk 17%. A pneumonia vaccine for those ages 65-75 reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s by as much as 40%, per a Duke University’s Social Science Research Institute study.

Watch your gut health and get enough fiber. The Alzheimer’s Association reported on a study showing those who have a bowel movement less often than every other day have 73% greater risk of subjective cognitive decline and other health problems.

When you can, avoid ultra-processed food. Research suggests those who consume the most have a 28% faster decline in scores for memory, verbal fluency and executive function compared to those who eat less of the foods. Ultra-processed foods include cereals, many frozen foods, soda, cereal and chips, among others.

Socialize. “Alzheimer’s researchers are now looking into whether increased socialization, along with a cocktail of lifestyle interventions including improved diet, exercise, cognitive stimulation and self-monitoring for heart-health risk can protect cognitive function,” the Alzheimer’s Association said in a news release.

The American Academy of Neurology has a free patient and caregiver magazine that looks at neurological disease and brain health. Visit BrainandLife.org.