[Association between social support and subjective and objective cognitive functions among middle-aged and elderly...

Objective: To investigate the association between social support and subjective and objective cognitive functions among the middle-aged and elderly population in Pingyin County, Jinan City, Shandong Province. Methods: Employing a multi-stage cluster random sampling method, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 2023 by selecting people aged 45-70 years from seven villages in three towns within Pingyin County, Jinan City, as survey respondents. Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS), Subjective Cognitive Decline-Questionnaire 9 (SCD-Q9) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Basic (MoCA-B) were used to assess the social support and cognitive status of interviewees, and a self-developed questionnaire was used to collect other basic information. Pearson correlation analysis, multiple linear regression and multifactorial logistic regression were used to explore the relationship between social support and subjective and objective cognitive functions. Results: A total of 1 891 subjects were finally included in the study, with 45.52±6.99 for the SSRS total score, an abnormal rate of 43.68% (826/1 891) for the SCD-Q9 score and an abnormal rate of 60.02% (1 135/1 891) for the MoCA-B score. The SSRS total score, subjective support score, objective support score and support utilization score were negatively correlated with SCD-Q9 scores and positively correlated with MoCA-B scores (all P<0.05). An increase in SSRS total score (β=-0.034, 95%CI: -0.051--0.017, P<0.001) and objective support score (β=-0.074, 95%CI: -0.121--0.027, P=0.002) can lower SCD-Q9 scores. Compared to those who had only 1 source of financial support or help with practical problems when experiencing an acute situation, those with 2-4 (OR=0.53, 95%CI: 0.34-0.82), 5 (OR=0.46, 95%CI: 0.27-0.79), or 6-7 (OR=0.42, 95%CI: 0.22-0.81) sources of help were more likely to have normal SCD-Q9 scores. Compared to individuals with ≤2 close friends who provided support and help, those with 3-5 (OR=0.67, 95%CI: 0.50-0.91) or ≥6 friends (OR=0.72, 95%CI: 0.54-0.97) were more likely to have normal MoCA-B scores. Moreover, compared to individuals who never participated in group activities, those who actively participated (OR=0.59, 95%CI: 0.42-0.81) were more likely to have normal MoCA-B scores. Conclusions: Social support has protective effects on subjective and objective cognitive functions, and various social support conditions have different protective effects on subjective and objective cognitive functions among middle-aged and older people. Improving social support conditions for middle-aged and elderly individuals may delay the process of cognitive decline.