Are lifestyle factors and mental attitude 30 years earlier associated with being a 90+ SuperAger? Results from the 90+ study

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundIndividuals with superior cognitive performance despite older age are known as SuperAgers. However, gaps in our knowledge of factors related to the ability to maintain this superior level of cognition remain. Our aim was to identify lifestyle factors and mental attitudes 30 years earlier that were related to superior cognition in the oldest‐old.MethodParticipants of The 90+ Study, a population‐based longitudinal cohort of people aged 90+, are survivors from the Leisure World Cohort Study (LWCS). We assigned a participant’s cognitive diagnosis during a multidisciplinary consensus conference after their death. We analyzed data from participants without dementia who had an evaluation within a year of death. Individuals who scored ≥28 in their last Mini Mental State Examination within one year to two months before death, were categorized as SuperAgers (SA) and the rest as non‐SuperAgers. At the time of enrollment into the LWCS, 30 years earlier, all participants completed a questionnaire on lifestyle factors (body mass index, physical activity, smoking habits, alcohol intake) and seven positively worded items from the Zung self‐rating depression scale. To assess the relationships between being a SA and lifestyle and positive mental attitudes, we calculated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals using multiple logistic regression.ResultsParticipants were 317 individuals (102 men and 215 women) with a mean age at the last visit of 96.6±3.3 years. Of them, 120 participants (37.8%) were identified as SA. Women and younger individuals were more likely to be SA while college education was unrelated (Table). Lifestyle factors and positive mental attitude were not associated with being a SA, although a greater proportion of SA tended to have healthful lifestyle habits, with normal body mass index, one or more hour of daily physical activity, and in the highest tertile for positive mental attitude (Table).ConclusionFactors like higher education, positive lifestyle choices and positive mental attitude, all related to living longer in this cohort, were not related to superior cognitive performance after ages 90 and older. Future research should try to identify other characteristics that may distinguish oldest‐old SuperAgers.