Khaberni - A recent international study reveals that the environment in which a person lives is just as impactful as their lifestyle in determining the rate of brain aging.
Factors such as pollution, poverty, or poor services can accelerate brain deterioration, while social justice and healthcare contribute to its slowdown.
Researchers relied on data from 18,701 individuals from 34 countries, studying what is known as the "exposome," which is the sum of environmental, social, and political factors a person is exposed to throughout their life. The results showed that these factors do not operate independently but interact with each other simultaneously, such that the coincidence of more than one risk factor amplifies the impact on brain health.
Researchers measured 73 different factors at the country level, including air pollution, climate fluctuations, water quality, and green spaces, in addition to indicators of poverty, inequality, and political stability. When analyzing these factors together, it turned out that they explain differences in brain aging up to 15 times compared to any single factor.
The results indicate that the environmental impacts on the brain are cumulative and complex, as the interactions between various factors significantly accelerate or slow down aging.
For example, physical environmental factors such as pollution, high temperatures, and lack of green spaces have been linked to changes in brain structure, especially in areas responsible for memory and emotional regulation. Researchers believe these effects are linked to biological processes such as neuroinflammation and oxidative stress.
In contrast, social factors, such as poverty and inequality and lack of support, have a strong impact on brain functions, especially those associated with thinking and social behavior. Continuous exposure to stress is believed to lead to accelerated deterioration of these areas over time, and its effect might exceed that of some diseases like dementia.
Researchers affirmed that these results apply to both healthy individuals and those with neurological diseases, reinforcing the idea that the general environment plays a crucial role in brain health.
The scientific team believes that the current focus on individual behaviors, such as diet and exercise, while important, is not sufficient alone to reduce the risks of brain aging, as a considerable portion of these risks are linked to broader conditions beyond an individual's control.
Based on this, the study calls for the adoption of comprehensive policies that improve the living environment, such as reducing air pollution, increasing green spaces, improving water quality, and promoting social justice.
It also emphasizes that protecting brain health requires cooperation between multiple sectors, including environmental and social policies, along with support for institutional stability and community engagement, to ensure a healthier environment for current and future generations.
