A Connection a Day Keeps Dementia at Bay

Looking for practical tools to support daily social connection?
Get started with The Social Connection Kit

Click here to learn more and download it now!

If you’re worried about dementia—because you’re noticing changes, it runs in your family, or you’re caring for someone you love—you’ve probably heard advice like “stay socially active.” But that phrase can feel vague and unrealistic, especially when energy, mobility, or memory are changing.

What research consistently shows is something much simpler: regular social isolation is linked to faster cognitive decline and higher dementia risk, while ongoing social engagement is associated with better cognitive health over time.
Not constant activity. Not busy schedules. Connection.

What actually counts as a “connection”?

A connection doesn’t need to be a big outing or a long conversation.
It does need to be in person.

Helpful for connection

• Face-to-face conversation (even brief)
• Doing a simple activity together
• Sitting together with back-and-forth interaction
• Shared attention, like listening to music or looking at photos

Less helpful on its own

• Television without interaction
• Being in the same room without engaging
• Phone calls or texting alone

Research suggests that in-person interaction is especially valuable because it activates multiple brain systems at once — language, emotion, attention, and social cues.

The goal: A connection a day

You don’t need perfection. You need consistency.

A connection a day helps slow decline by:

• Keeping social and emotional brain networks active
  
  
• Supporting mood and reducing stress
  
  
• Reinforcing a sense of purpose and identity
  
  
• Preventing isolation from quietly increasing over time

Even 10–30 minutes of genuine, face-to-face engagement matters. Short interactions still count.

Ready to put this into practice?
Get started today with The Social Connection Kit—a printable set of tools designed to support daily, in-person connection. 

Click here to learn more and download it now!

Making connection doable (especially with dementia)

On low-energy days

• Look at photos together
• Listen to familiar music
• Sit outside or by a window
• Share a simple, familiar task

On higher-energy days

• Take a walk with someone
• Visit the library or community center
• Attend a class, church service, or group lunch

When words are harder

• Choose activities where language isn’t required
• Focus on shared attention instead of conversation
  

The goal isn’t to do everything.
It’s to do something, every day.

Think of connection as practice

Just like physical exercise or music practice, connection works best in small, regular doses. Missed days happen. What matters is returning to the habit.

That’s why tools like daily checklists and monthly calendars can help — they make connection visible, realistic, and part of routine life rather than another source of pressure.

Small moments add up.
And connection, used daily, helps keep the brain engaged.

 

At Practice Pax, we believe learning and connection grow best through small, consistent moments—shared together.

— Practice Pax

Get started today with The Social Connection Kit.

This printable kit includes tools, worksheets, and planners designed to support daily, in-person connection and overall well-being, including:

• The Social “Dose” Guide
• Social Ideas Bank
• Daily Connection Planner
• Connection Ideas Map
• Monthly Connection Calendar

Click here to learn more and download The Social Connection Kit now!

Want to understand the science behind this? Keep reading!

What the science tells us

Large, long-term studies published in leading U.S. medical journals have repeatedly found that people who are more socially engaged tend to experience slower cognitive decline than those who are isolated. In one widely cited study published in Neurology, older adults who regularly participated in social activities showed better preservation of thinking and memory over time compared to their less socially active peers.

More recent population-level research published in JAMA Network Open found that increases in social isolation over time were associated with higher dementia risk, even after accounting for other health factors. This reinforces an important idea: isolation doesn’t just matter once — it compounds.

Because of findings like these, major U.S. health organizations now consider social isolation a modifiable risk factor for dementia. In other words, it’s something we can actively work on, even later in life.

These studies don’t promise prevention or cures. But they do show that social connection supports the brain systems involved in memory, attention, emotion, and identity — all areas affected by dementia.

Want to read more?

Alzheimer's.gov has a great article that details some of the health risks associated with social isolation.

Social isolation, loneliness in older people pose health risks.

Also see our Research section below.

Research & References

The ideas in this post are informed by research published in leading medical and scientific journals, including:

1. Social Isolation Changes and Long-Term Outcomes Among Older Adults
   Lyu et al., 2024 - JAMA Network Open
   
   
2. Associations between social connections and cognition: A Global Collaborative Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis
   Samtani et al., 2022 - The Lancet Healthy Longevity
   
   
3. Are social isolation and loneliness associated with cognitive decline in ageing? A systematic review and meta-analysis
   Cardona et al., 2023 - Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience
   
   
4. Social connections as determinants of cognitive health and Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias
   Joshi et al., 2023 — Alzheimer’s & Dementia (journal) / review on PubMed Central