Aim
The prevalence of dementia is rising due to increases in the aging population and chronic health conditions. The present study examined whether lifestyle activities, including instrumental activities of daily living and social roles, were associated with dementia incidence in Japanese community‐dwelling older adults.
Methods
This longitudinal study involved 4564 participants (age ≥65 years) who were classified by age and sex. Lifestyle activities, risk factors for dementia and incidence of new dementia were recorded.
Results
After an average of 42.6 months, 219 participants (4.8%) experienced a new onset of dementia. Survival analyses using the Cox proportional hazards regression model showed that the probability of dementia was significantly lower in participants who engaged in daily conversation (hazard ratio [HR] 0.56, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.35–0.89, P = 0.015), driving a car (HR 0.63, 95% CI 0.45–0.88, P = 0.007), shopping (HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.34–0.96, P = 0.033) and field work or gardening (HR 0.71, 95% CI 0.54–0.94, P = 0.016).
Conclusions
We concluded that specific lifestyle activities might play an important role in preventing dementia in older adults. The activities that prevent dementia might differ depending on sex and age. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2018; 18: 1491–1496.