London - Speaking a second language may delay dementia by up to five years – more than powerful drugs, researchers say.
A study suggests being bilingual exercises the mind, so it has greater reserves when disease takes hold.
But there are no additional advantages to speaking any more than two languages, according to the study in the journal Neurology.
It was carried out by researchers from the University of Edinburgh and Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences in Hyderabad, India.
Thomas Bak, of Edinburgh University, said: “These findings suggest that bilingualism might have a stronger influence on dementia than any currently available drugs.”
In the largest study to date on dementia and bilingualism, scientists recorded the age at which almost 650 patients in Hyderabad, of whom 60 percent were bilingual, had been diagnosed with the condition.
On average, people who spoke two languages developed dementia 4.5 years later than those who did not. The delay ranged from three years for Alzheimer’s disease to six years for frontotemporal dementia.
Bilingual patients tended to develop dementia at age 65, compared with 61 for the monolingual.
Illiterate bilingual people saw the same advantage, proving it is not down to education, scientists said.
They suggest switching between different sounds, concepts and grammar structures trains the brain.
But further studies are needed to determine exactly how such training can delay dementia.
Dr Simon Ridley, of charity Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “These findings lend weight to the theory that keeping the brain active may provide a form of ‘cognitive reserve’, helping to delay the onset of symptoms. It would be useful to see further and larger studies of this type.” - Daily Mail