Chronic pain lasting for over three months increases the risk of cognitive decline and dementia, a new study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) revealed.
The hippocampus shrank even more when the pain was felt in two places in the body, the equivalent of two years of aging, according to the study published on Monday.
- Over 19,000 individuals between 40 and 69 years of age participated in the study.
- Chronic pain has been linked to anxiety, depression, and opioid dependence.
- Sleeping less than six hours in midlife raises the risk of dementia by 30%, according to a study from 2021, which tracked 8,000 participants for 25 years.
- In the U.S., at least 1 in 5 people live with long-lasting pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
