09/10/2025
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Researchers at the University of Nottingham have discovered that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated brain aging in many adults, including those who were never infected. Using advanced machine learning models to analyze brain scans from nearly 1,000 healthy participants taken before and after the pandemic, scientists found that overall “brain age” increased more rapidly than normal especially among older adults, men, and individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. The researchers suggest that stress, isolation, and lifestyle disruption during the pandemic likely played a key role in this accelerated aging.
Interestingly, only participants who had actually contracted COVID-19 showed measurable declines in cognitive performance, such as slower processing speed. For uninfected individuals, the changes appeared structural rather than functional meaning they might be reversible as life stabilizes. The findings highlight how social and emotional stress can physically affect the brain, emphasizing the importance of mental well-being and social connection in maintaining brain health.
📷 Credit: University of Nottingham / Nature Aging Journal / PMCID: PMC8711135, 2025