Number of children and dementia risk: a causal mediation analysis using data from the HUNT study linked with national registries in Norway.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Childlessness, as well as having a high number of children, has been reported to be associated with an elevated risk of dementia compared to having 2-3 children. The mechanisms underlying these relationships are not well understood and may be mediated by different midlife risk factors. We examined the mediating role of various factors on the relationship between the number of children and dementia risk. These factors include socioeconomic factors (e.g., occupational complexity), psychosocial (e.g.., social activities, loneliness, life satisfaction), lifestyle (e.g., smoking, physical inactivity, alcohol intake), and chronic diseases (e.g., obesity, diabetes, depression, hearing impairment and hypertension).

Methods

Using a historic cohort design, we included 9,745

SUBMITTER: Mekonnen T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11770967 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature