Mother's education and late-life disparities in memory and dementia risk among US military veterans and non-veterans.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Adverse childhood socioeconomic status (cSES) predicts higher late-life risk of memory loss and dementia. Veterans of U.S. wars are eligible for educational and economic benefits that may offset cSES disadvantage. We test whether cSES disparities in late-life memory and dementia are smaller among veterans than non-veterans.

Methods

Data came from US-born men in the 1995-2014 biennial surveys of the Health and Retirement Study (n=7916 born 1928-1956, contributing n=38 381 cognitive assessments). Childhood SES was represented by maternal education. Memory and dementia risk were assessed with brief neuropsychological assessments and proxy reports. Military service (veteran/non-veteran) was evaluated as a modifier of the effect of maternal education on memory and deme

SUBMITTER: Vable AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6226315 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature