On Thursday 14 July 2016, the Luxembourg Institute of Health published the results of a study on the number of dementia and cognitive disorders among elderly in Luxembourg; showing that the elderly in Luxembourg are less likely to suffer from these disorders than in other parts of the world.

The study conducted used a sample of 438 respondents over the age of 64 in Luxembourg, and is a part of the MemoVie Project undertaken by the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH).

The study showed that 3.8 % of the elderly population suffers from dementia, and 26.1 % reported that they had cognitive disorders.

"The proportion of people who suffer from dementia is surprisingly low compared to figures that emerge from other countries," said Dr. Perquin. "In similar studies with greater participation from the elderly who suffer from these symptoms, the results showed 6.4% for Europe, 7.1% in Latin America and 8% for Canada."

There has been very little research done on the topic of cognitive disorders among the elderly – the results can therefore only be compared to those of a study in Australia, where 33.5 % of the participants reported that they suffer from memory problems.

It is predicted that the results of the study indicates that Luxembourg residents have a long life expectancy, without major impairment.

Dr. Perquin and her colleagues suspect that these positive results have something to do with the multi-lingualism of the residents of Luxembourg. Previous studies have shown that people who frequently use more than two languages are less susceptible to cognitive decline than people who are bilingual.

"People who have a good education or learn multiple languages in an early age develop a higher cognitive reserve” added Dr. Perquin.

As an extension of this study, Dr. Perquin along with colleagues from the LIH, are planning a study on the connection between multi-lingualism and cognitive reserves. They are currently looking for volunteers to participate in the study, termed MemoLingua.

The LIH are looking for multilingual residents of Luxembourg, over the age of 64, to partake in the study.

To participate, call Dr Perquin on 26 97 07 44 or Mrs Caldarelli 26 97 07 74.