Multilingualism can delay cognitive ageing and possibly also protect against dementia, a new study demonstrates. The effect even increases with the number of languages you speak. Dublin/Berlin (dpa) – People who regularly speak multiple languages age more slowly on average, a study using data from more than 86,000 adults in 27 European countries found. Published in the journal Nature Aging, an international team led by Agustin Ibañez of Trinity College Dublin matched participants’ chronological ages with biological data and behavioural measures, including health, fitness, lifestyle and social activity. They then calculated whether individuals were biologically younger or older than their chronological age. Participants were aged between 50 and 90. Multilingual people had a markedly lower likelihood of accelerated ageing than those who speak only one language. What's more the effect doesn't stop at two languages, and each additional language strengthened the protective effect, researchers found. Peter Berlit, secretary general of the German Society for Neurology (DGN) and not involved in the study, said the research also points to protection against dementia. "This study confirms smaller observational studies that have shown that multilingualism appears to be a protective factor against dementia." While no people with dementia were included in the study, he said there were important indications of mechanisms that could reduce the risk of cognitive decline in older age. "Resilience to cognitive decline is actually increased by using multiple languages." More languages, stronger effect The researchers attribute the effect to the so-called cognitive reserve. "Multilingualism seems to be a buffer in the brain," explained Berlit. "People who speak several languages have more memory to draw on in old age." The challenge now, say neuroscientists Jason Rothman and Federico Gallo of Lancaster University in a commentary on the study, is to understand the mechanisms of this effect and translate them into strategies for healthy ageing. They say multilingualism could be a cost-effective lever for public health, potentially as significant as programmes promoting physical activity or smoking cessation. Language as dementia prevention Berlit also described it as an effective preventive option. "Learning a new language is a simple and very effective recommendation for dementia prevention. It is a health policy measure that anyone can implement." The researchers now plan to investigate whether learning new languages in later life has the same protective effect as lifelong multilingualism. "Future studies should distinguish between languages learned in childhood and those learned in old age. I believe both are effective, but this still needs to be proven," said Berlit. The research comes at a time when AI has begun to undermine the value of multilingualism in some areas, with software better than ever at translating between spoken and written language in real time. The following information is not intended for publication dpa pls yyzz n1 waw
(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)
