Cognitive health and complex work may reduce dementia risk

Neuroscientist Tommy Wood, an associate professor at the University of Washington, suggests that mentally demanding work can help maintain cognitive abilities and reduce the risk of dementia. According to Wood, the complexity and mental requirements of a job are more significant than the specific profession itself.

One key factor in brain health is spatial orientation and processing. Challenging the brain to navigate and create mental maps activates the hippocampus, a region vital for memory and learning. A Harvard Medical School study published in the British Medical Journal in December 2024 noted that taxi and ambulance drivers had lower rates of Alzheimer's-related deaths compared to other professions, likely due to the constant demand for spatial orientation. However, heavy reliance on GPS technology may impact these cognitive benefits.