The Covid-19 pandemic may have aged our brains, according to a new study

A new study, led by experts at the University of Nottingham, has found that the Covid-19 pandemic may have accelerated people’s brain health, even if they were never infected with the virus.

What does it mean to grow older, not just in years, but in terms of brain health? Can stress, isolation, and global disruption leave their mark on people’s minds?

The findings of this new study, which are published in Nature Communications, showed that people who lived through the Covid-19 pandemic showed signs of faster brain ageing over time than those scanned entirely before it. The changes were most noticeable in older individuals, in men, and in people from more disadvantaged backgrounds. 

Only participants who were infected by Covid-19 between their scans showed a drop in certain cognitive abilities, such as mental flexibility and processing speed. This may suggest that the pandemic’s brain ageing effect, on its own (without infection) may not cause symptoms. Also, the authors highlight that the observed brain ageing may be reversible.

The study was led by a team of experts from the University’s School of Medicine and was supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre and the Medical Research Council (MRC) DEMISTIFI programme. 

Dr Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad led the study, he said: “What surprised me most was that even people who hadn’t had Covid showed significant increases in brain ageing rates. It really shows how much the experience of the pandemic itself, everything from isolation to uncertainty, may have affected our brain health.”

The research team looked at longitudinal brain scans from nearly 1,000 healthy adults, taken as part of the UK Biobank study. Some participants had scans before and after the pandemic; others, only before. Using advanced imaging and machine learning, the researchers estimated each person’s “brain age”—how old their brain appeared to be compared to their actual age. 

The brain age model was developed using brain scans from over 15,000 healthy individuals, without comorbidities, allowing the researchers to build an accurate model for estimating brain age.

“This study reminds us that brain health is shaped not only by illness, but by our everyday environment,” said Dorothee Auer, Professor of Neuroimaging and senior author on the study. “The pandemic put a strain on people’s lives, especially those already facing disadvantage. We can’t yet test whether the changes we saw will reverse, but it’s certainly possible, and that’s an encouraging thought.”

Stamatios Sotiropoulos, Professor of Computational Neuroimaging, and co-lead author added: “The longitudinal MRI data acquired before and after the pandemic from the UK Biobank gave us a rare window to observe how major life events can affect the brain.”

ENDS

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About the University of Nottingham 

Ranked 97 in the world and 17th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.

Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.

The University is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

The University is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the third most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2024 report by High Fliers Research. We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home. More news…

About NIHR

The mission of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research. We do this by:

• Funding high quality, timely research that benefits the NHS, public health and social care;
• Investing in world-class expertise, facilities and a skilled delivery workforce to translate discoveries into improved treatments and services;
• Partnering with patients, service users, carers and communities, improving the relevance, quality and impact of our research;
• Attracting, training and supporting the best researchers to tackle complex health and social care challenges;
• Collaborating with other public funders, charities and industry to help shape a cohesive and globally competitive research system;
• Funding applied global health research and training to meet the needs of the poorest people in low and middle income countries.

NIHR is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care. Its work in low and middle income countries is principally funded through UK international development funding from the UK government.