Childhood perceived financial status, current financial concerns, and late‐life cognition: Study of Healthy Aging in African Americans (STAR)

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundLow socioeconomic status in childhood has been associated with worse late‐life cognition. However, few studies have examined the association between perceived childhood financial status on late‐life cognition in this population.Method764 participants of the Study of Healthy Aging in African Americans (STAR), a cohort of Black Americans aged 50+ (mean age 62) reported their childhood financial status (response options: pretty well off (henceforth above average), about average (henceforth average) varied, or poor) and frequency of current financial concerns (coded as always/often, sometimes, never). Baseline executive function, semantic memory, and verbal episodic memory were assessed through the Spanish and English Neuropsychological Assessment Scales. Linear regression models estimated the associations of childhood financial status and current financial concerns with domain‐specific scores adjusting for age, sex, and education. Sensitivity analyses concurrently included childhood financial status and current financial concerns.ResultAmong participants, 68% were female, 28% reported poor childhood financial status, and 12% reported “always” or “often” having current financial concerns (Table 1). Compared to individuals reporting above average childhood finances, sematic memory scores were lower among those reporting average (β = ‐0.16; 95% CI: ‐0.32, 0.001; Figure 2), varied (β = ‐0.34; 95% CI: ‐0.61, ‐0.07), or poor childhood financial status (β = ‐0.20; 95% CI: ‐0.37, ‐0.03). There were no differences in executive function scores or verbal episodic memory scores by childhood financial status (Figures 1 and 3). Frequency of current financial concern was not associated with executive function, semantic memory, nor verbal episodic memory scores (Figures 1‐3). The association between childhood financial status and semantic memory scores persisted when additionally adjusted for frequency of current financial concerns. There were no associations between childhood financial status and current financial concerns with executive function or verbal episodic memory scores.ConclusionChildhood financial status was associated with lower semantic memory test performance, even after accounting for current financial concerns. Future studies including direct measurement of brain health (e.g. brain imaging) are needed to better illuminate associations between childhood socioeconomic status with late‐life brain health.