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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0European Journal of Ageing

Sex differences in the effects of lifetime intellectual cognitive reserve on language trajectory and risk of non-amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a longitudinal study

  • Dandan Wang1,2,3
  • Mingxi Dang2,3,4
  • Shijie Long2,3
  • Jun Wang2,3,5
  • Xiaoyi Hu6
  • Xin Li2,3,5
  • Zhanjun Zhang2,3,5,7,8
8 affiliations
  1. 1Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  2. 2State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  3. 3Beijing Aging Brain Rejuvenation Initiative (BABRI) Centre, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  4. 4School of Systems Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  5. 5Beijing Key Laboratory of Cognitive Intelligence for Elderly Brain Health, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  6. 6Faculty of Education, School of Special Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  7. 7Institute for Advanced Study, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
  8. 8Innovation Institute of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, 250117 Shandong China
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Abstract

Our previous study had confirmed that lifetime intellectual cognitive reserve (LICR) is associated with better late-life cognition. However, whether LICR can delay cognitive decline remains unknown. We systematically examined the influence of LICR on cognitive trajectories, as well as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) risk, and whether such associations differ by sex. A total of 1308 cognitively intact individuals (mean age 65.54 years) were included. Information on early educational attainment, midlife occupational complexity and mental leisure activities after retirement collected at baseline was used to construct LICR, while cognitive domain scores were derived from several neuropsychological tests assessed at baseline and twice follow-up, using confirmatory factor analysis. Data were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models and Cox regression models. Compared to participants with lower LICR, those with higher LICR exhibited significantly slower language ability decline (β = 0.071, 95% CI 0.002–0.14, p = 0.043), reduced risk of MCI (HR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.23–0.85, p = 0.014) and non-amnestic MCI (naMCI) (HR = 0.09, 95% CI 0.03–0.34, p < 0.001), rather than aMCI. Examination of its components showed that higher educational attainment was related to slower language ability decline (β = 0.014, 95% CI 0.004–0.02, p = 0.004), and it was also associated with reduced risk of naMCI (HR = 0.84, 95% CI 0.74–0.94, p = 0.004). Analyses by sex revealed that women with higher LICR had slower language ability decline (β = 0.04, 95% CI 0.01–0.07, p = 0.003). Among older adults, especially women, higher LICR was associated with preserved language ability and a lower risk of naMCI.

Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{wang2026differences,
  title = {{Sex differences in the effects of lifetime intellectual cognitive reserve on language trajectory and risk of non-amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a longitudinal study}},
  author = {Dandan Wang and Mingxi Dang and Shijie Long and Jun Wang and Xiaoyi Hu and Xin Li and Zhanjun Zhang},
  journal = {European Journal of Ageing},
  year = {2026},
  month = jul,
  doi = {10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Sex differences in the effects of lifetime intellectual cognitive reserve on language trajectory and risk of non-amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a longitudinal study
AU  - Dandan Wang
AU  - Mingxi Dang
AU  - Shijie Long
AU  - Jun Wang
AU  - Xiaoyi Hu
AU  - Xin Li
AU  - Zhanjun Zhang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/29
JO  - European Journal of Ageing
DO  - 10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8
AB  - Our previous study had confirmed that lifetime intellectual cognitive reserve (LICR) is associated with better late-life cognition. However, whether LICR can delay cognitive decline remains unknown. We systematically examined the influence of LICR on cognitive trajectories, as well as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) risk, and whether such associations differ by sex. A total of 1308 cognitively intact individuals (mean age 65.54 years) were included. Information on early educational attainment, midlife occupational complexity and mental leisure activities after retirement collected at baseline was used to construct LICR, while cognitive domain scores were derived from several neuropsychological tests assessed at baseline and twice follow-up, using confirmatory factor analysis. Data were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models and Cox regression models. Compared to participants with lower LICR, those with higher LICR exhibited significantly slower language ability decline (β = 0.071, 95% CI 0.002–0.14, p = 0.043), reduced risk of MCI (HR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.23–0.85, p = 0.014) and non-amnestic MCI (naMCI) (HR = 0.09, 95% CI 0.03–0.34, p < 0.001), rather than aMCI. Examination of its components showed that higher educational attainment was related to slower language ability decline (β = 0.014, 95% CI 0.004–0.02, p = 0.004), and it was also associated with reduced risk of naMCI (HR = 0.84, 95% CI 0.74–0.94, p = 0.004). Analyses by sex revealed that women with higher LICR had slower language ability decline (β = 0.04, 95% CI 0.01–0.07, p = 0.003). Among older adults, especially women, higher LICR was associated with preserved language ability and a lower risk of naMCI.  Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-026-00927-8.
SN  - 1613-9372
SN  - 1613-9380
ER  -