Lifecourse Traumatic Events and Cognitive Aging in the Health and Retirement Study

Lifecourse Traumatic Events and Cognitive Aging in the Health and Retirement Study, in American Journal of Preventive Medicine

key takeaway: It's tricky. "Experiencing 1 or more traumatic events over the lifecourse was associated with accelerated decline compared with experiencing no events (e.g., β= −0.05 [95% CI= −0.07, −0.02] Health and Retirement Study-Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status units/year; 1 vs 0 events). In contrast, experiencing traumatic events was associated with better cognitive function cross-sectionally. Furthermore, the impact of trauma on cognitive decline was of greater magnitude when it occurred after the age of 64 years."