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Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Highlighting and Reducing the Impact of Negative Aging Stereotypes During Older Adults' Cognitive Testing
Published on: January 24, 2020
Risk and protective factors for cognitive decline in older adults from a nationally representative sample in India:
Alden L Gross1, Emma Nichols2,3, Miguel Arce Rentería4
1Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Introduction:
We characterized modifiable risk and protective factors for cognitive decline in India.
Methods:
Using the first nationally representative population-based longitudinal sample of N = 6168 older adults in India, we evaluated associations of risk factors (demographic characteristics, self-reported and objective health characteristics, health behaviors, and sensory function) for late-life cognitive decline with up to 6.4 years of follow-up (range: 2.8 to 6.4 years).
Results:
The mean rate of general cognitive decline was -0.029 SD per year and was progressively steeper with age. Most risk factors, particularly demographic and cardiovascular characteristics, were associated with steeper cognitive decline in expected directions: Associations of history of high cholesterol or heart attack on rate of cognitive decline, for example, were comparable to being 8 to 10 years older.
Discussion:
Most risk factors were associated with change in expected directions, highlighting the potential generalizability to India of previously identified risk factors for dementia.
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