| |
Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
 | |
|
The effect of childcare activities on cognitive status and depression in older adults
— gender differences in a 4.4-year longitudinal study | | Author(s) | Caterina Trevisan, Maria Valentina Pamio, Chiara Curreri |
| Journal title | International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, vol 33, no 2, February 2018 |
| Publisher | Wiley, February 2018 |
| Pages | pp 348-357 |
| Source | http://www.orangejournal.org |
| Keywords | Children ; Activities of older people ; Grandparents as carers ; Older men ; Older women ; Cognitive impairment ; Depression ; Longitudinal surveys ; Italy. |
| Annotation | Although involvement in childcare activities seems to promote better physical and mental health in older adults, its impact on cognitive status and depression has not yet been fully examined. The aim of this Italian study was to analyse the association between engagement in childcare activities and cognitive and psychological status over a 4.4-year period in community-dwelling older adults. 2,104 individuals aged 65 years and above without severe cognitive impairment at baseline were categorised according to the frequency of their involvement in childcare activities (everyday, occasionally, never). The participants' cognitive status and depressive symptoms were evaluated at baseline and after 4.4 years. During the follow-up, 269 (12.8%) new cases of cognitive impairment and 229 (10.9%) new cases of depression were registered. Men engaged in childcare showed an almost 20% lower risk of cognitive impairment and cognitive decline. Women demonstrated similar results, except for those occasionally involved in childcare, who had a higher risk of cognitive decline compared with women who never engaged in it. The risk of developing depression was reduced in men involved daily and occasionally in childcare, who also demonstrated a lower risk of exacerbating depressive symptoms compared with subjects who were never involved in it. The onset of depression was reduced in women occasionally engaged in childcare, but not significantly in those daily involved in it. These findings demonstrate that involvement of older adults in childcare activities seems to lower the risk of cognitive impairment in both genders and to prevent onset or worsening of depression, particularly in older men. (JL). |
| Accession Number | CPA-180302225 A |
| Classmark | SBC: G: P6:SW: BC: BD: E4: ENR: 3J: 76V |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
|
| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
| |
|