UK education reform and dementia risk study

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) suggests a potential causal link between increased compulsory schooling and a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

Researchers analyzed data from over 100,000 participants in the UK Biobank, using the 1972 Raising of School-Leaving Age Act as a natural experiment. This reform increased the minimum school-leaving age from 15 to 16 in England, Scotland, and Wales for students born on or after September 1, 1957. By comparing individuals with similar backgrounds who were affected differently by the cutoff, scientists observed a decline in cumulative dementia incidence among those who stayed in school for the extra year.

The protective effect was notably observed in individuals with a high genetic predisposition to the disease, such as those with variations in the APOE gene. Recent findings specify that one additional year of education reduced the probability of developing dementia by approximately 0.88 percent. For individuals carrying the APOE-E4 genetic risk variant, the additional year of schooling nearly eliminated the statistical difference in dementia risk between those with high and low genetic susceptibility.

The study also noted a lower occurrence of heart attacks and strokes in the group with more schooling. While researchers suggest factors like higher income and job characteristics may play a role, they noted that the statistical estimates of reduction were unusually large and should be interpreted with caution. Because the oldest participants were 65, further long-term follow-up is required to determine if these benefits persist into older age.