Having a glass-half-full attitude may protect your cognitive health down the line. A recently published article concluded that extroverted people who are conscientious and have a positive outlook may have a lower risk of developing dementia than people who harbor neuroticism and have a negative outlook. The study examined the top five personality traits (Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Openness to experience, Neuroticism, and Agreeableness) as well as positive or negative affect and satisfaction with life and compared them with cognitive performance and neuropathology at autopsy. Over 44,000 adults were followed for up to 21 years.
During that time, approximately 1700 cases of dementia were found in that population. The authors concluded that conscientiousness, extraversion and a positive affect lowered the risk of developing dementia while high neuroticism, low conscientiousness and a negative affect increased the risk of developing dementia.
The implication is that personality traits can be used in screening for early dementia, when intervention can have its greatest impact.
BeCare Neuro Link can screen for early signs of cognitive decline. Patients who have the high risk personality traits can use our app to follow their cognition and choose to seek attention earlier if their performance on our activities and questionnaires declines over time.
Reference: https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/alz.13523