# Influences of Early and Later Life Events on Cognition and All-Cause Dementia: Evidence from Populations with Low Education and Limited Resources

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · 2024 · $539,441

## Abstract

Project Summary
Rising life expectancy is contributing to rapid increases in the size of the older population and is
expected to lead to a sharp rise in Alzheimer’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease related
dementias from about 47 million people worldwide today, to potentially more than 140 million in
2050. Less education is one of the most influential modifiable risk factors of dementia, but its
cause pathways are less understood in the U.S. context due to the challenge in data collection
and potential confounding with other factors. Lifestyle factors as well as environmental factors
might further reduce or increase an individual’s risk of developing dementia, particularly
interacting with education and other resources one may receive at a younger age. We propose
to advance our understanding of protective and risk factors for late-life cognitive decline and
Alzheimer’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease-related dementias (hereafter referred to as
dementia) in China, a large population with more variable levels of education attainment under
rapid and broadly impactful social and economic shifts. We propose a novel life-course model of
risk factors, building on the recently proposed model by the Lancet commission, which links
dementia risk to early and mid-life factors, within the context of historical, organizational, and
physical environments, including obesity, diabetes hearing loss, visual impairment, smoking,
drinking, depression, physical inactivity, and social isolation.
Specifically, this project aims to further study early and mid-life personal, family, and social
factors that may contribute to late-life cognition and dementia risk using new, retrospective lifehistory
interview data in China. These findings will deepen our understanding of potential
causes and risk factors of the disease and thus inform potential strategies to improve the
prevention and detection of Alzheimer’s Disease in the United States.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10899634
- **Project number:** 5R01AG067625-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
- **Principal Investigator:** JOHN A STRAUSS
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $539,441
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-15 → 2026-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10899634

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10899634, Influences of Early and Later Life Events on Cognition and All-Cause Dementia: Evidence from Populations with Low Education and Limited Resources (5R01AG067625-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10899634. Licensed CC0.

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