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COVID-19

Accelerated Brain Ageing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

A recent study published in Nature Communications explores the relationship between the COVID-19 pandemic and brain ageing. Using MRI data from the UK Biobank study, researchers identified evidence of accelerated brain ageing in individuals living through the pandemic. The study found that, even in the absence of COVID-19 infection, living through the pandemic was associated with accelerated ageing of the brain. The researchers suggest that factors such as sex, socio-demographic background, and psychological and social stresses may have contributed to this acceleration.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study found that individuals living through the pandemic experienced accelerated brain ageing, with an average brain age difference of 5.5 months for every year lived during the pandemic.
  • The majority of participants showed brain ageing at the expected rate, but a higher-than-usual proportion showed striking increases in brain age of an extra 15 to 20 months per year.
  • The increased brain age correlated with lower scores in a test of thinking skills, such as attention and problem-solving, in individuals infected with COVID-19.
  • The study suggests that the observed brain ageing may reflect a biopsychosocial effect combining the impact of COVID-19 infection with the psychological and social stresses of the pandemic.

Statistics:

  • 90% of the UK population may have been infected with COVID-19 by the end of 2022, as estimated by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (Source: Mil-OSI United Kingdom).
  • The study was based on unique UK Biobank data with repeated brain scans, which excludes people with chronic illnesses such as diabetes and depression (Source: Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad et al., 2025).
  • The UK Biobank underrepresents the most socioeconomically deprived groups, where the association between the pandemic and brain ageing was largest (Source: Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad et al., 2025).

Sources:

  • Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad et al. (2025). Accelerated brain ageing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nature Communications, 16:00 UK time, 22 July 2025. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61033-4
  • Mil-OSI United Kingdom (2025). MIL-OSI Aggregation. United Kingdom -- Executive Government & Departments.
  • Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. (2022). COVID-19 attributable mortality and years of life lost. The Lancet, 399(10310), 1295-1306.

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