New Canadian research has found that having a strong ability for learning languages may help to reduce an individual’s risk of developing dementia.
The nuns were asked to report on how many languages they spoke, and 106 samples of the nuns’ written work was also provided for analysis., showed that just six percent of the nuns who spoke four or more languages developed dementia, compared to 31 percent of those who only spoke one language. When the researchers analysed the nuns’ written work, they found that written linguistic ability appeared to have an even greater effect on reducing dementia risk than the ability to speak different languages.
“This gives us the ability to look at early-life factors on health later in life without worrying about all the other factors, such as socioeconomic status and genetics, which usually vary from person to person during adulthood and can weaken other studies.”