Cheating partner or dreadful in-laws could age your brain by four years, say scientists

Experiencing just one of the stressful life events was equivalent to four years of cognitive ageing. Photo / 123RF

By Sarah Knapton

Dealing with stressful life events, such as a difficult relative, being flooded from your home or your partner having an affair, can age the brain by four years, increasing the risk of dementia, scientists have found.

Researchers identified 27 scenarios which are so upsetting they put severe strain on the body and cause long-term health problems.

For children and teenagers, having to repeat a year of school, being expelled or growing up with a parent who abused drugs or alcohol were found to be particularly damaging to the brain.

Likewise, for adults, losing a job, the death of a parent or spouse, long-term unemployment and joining the Army all had negative consequences in later life, the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health found.

Experiencing just one of the stressful life events was equivalent to four years of cognitive ageing, meaning that a 66-year-old would have the mental capacity of someone who was 70. But experts said the effect was probably cumulative, meaning the more events experienced the greater the damage. Cognitive decline in later life is a major risk factor for dementia.

Dr Carol Routledge, director of research at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "Stressful life events can turn our lives upside down for a time and though most people can eventually return to an even keel, we can't be sure how psychological stress and worse could impact the workings of the brain over time. There is a growing realisation that events and experiences throughout life can impact the brain decades later."

For the new study, researchers asked 1320 people in the US in their 50s and 60s to undergo memory and problem solving tests to rate their mental ability They were also asked to fill in a questionnaire about their lifetime stress.