Smoking is literally making you dumber as you age — but some lifestyle habits could help

In an age where we obsess over superfoods, mental exercises, and tech gadgets to boost your brainpower, it turns out that one of the most detrimental factors to our cognitive health is something a lot of people still do: smoke. The findings are, quite literally, mind-numbing.

The study meticulously analysed data from a whopping 32,000 adults aged 50 and over from 14 European countries. These participants were tracked over a decade, providing insights into how various lifestyle choices affected their cognitive decline. The researchers focused on four key behaviours: smoking, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and social contact.

85% worse scores for smokers

Participants were divided into lifestyle groups based on whether they smoked, engaged in moderate and vigorous physical activity at least once per week, socialised weekly, and adhered to recommended alcohol consumption limits. Cognitive function was assessed using memory and verbal fluency tests, offering a clear picture of how brains were faring over time.
Here’s the kicker: the study found that smoking was linked to significantly faster cognitive decline. In fact, cognitive scores for smokers dropped up to 85% more over 10 years compared to their non-smoking counterparts. This is a staggering figure, suggesting that smoking is akin to hitting the fast-forward button on cognitive ageing.

Adopting other healthy habits is critical

But there’s a twist in the tale. Among smokers, those who maintained a healthy lifestyle in other respects — regular exercise, moderate alcohol intake, and frequent socialising — experienced a rate of cognitive decline similar to non-smokers. It seems these healthy habits can somewhat counterbalance the brain-draining effects of smoking.
"Previous evidence suggests individuals who engage in more healthy behaviours have slower cognitive decline; however, it was unclear whether all behaviours contributed equally," notes lead author Mikaela Bloomberg. "Our findings suggest that among the healthy behaviours we examined, not smoking may be among the most important in terms of maintaining cognitive function."

While it's never easy to quit, the benefits for your brain — both now and in the future — are clear. And for those who continue to smoke, embracing other healthy behaviours might just keep you a step ahead in the cognitive game.

The findings of this research have been published in Nature Communications and can be accessed here.