By Megan Rizo, Student Pharmacist, and Karen L. Kier, Pharmacist
ONU Healthwise Pharmacy 

You Are My Sunshine was first released in 1939 and copyrighted in 1940, but the original writer of the lyrics is debated.  On March 14, 1941, Gene Autry debuted the song in his movie Back in the Saddle.  

The song has been covered over 300 times by famous singers such as Bing Crosby, Doris Day and Ray Charles. The song was even part of The Simpsons television show in 1997. The song is one of the official songs for the state of Louisiana.

The song is often sung by parents and grandparents to show affection to their children and grandchildren.  

Can spending time caring for grandchildren reduce the risk of dementia?

A large group study of 10,058 Chinese adults (age 50-79) examined whether caring for grandchildren was linked to the risk of having dementia. The authors classified the intensity of caregiving as follows: non-caregivers (0 hours per week), moderate caregivers (1-39 hours per week), intensive caregivers ( 40 hours per week), and those without grandchildren.

Older adults who cared for grandchildren a few hours a week were less likely to develop dementia than those who did not. The protective association was only seen in the moderate caregiving group and not for the adults in the intense caregiving or no grandchildren groups. 

The “protective association” in this study meant the relationship between moderate grandchild care was associated with a lower likelihood of developing dementia over time. Part of the benefit came from broadband internet access, owning a mobile phone, and reduced loneliness. This suggests that there is a better social and digital connection and less isolation when taking care of grandchildren. 

Older adults while caring for their grandchildren can benefit from engaging in caregiving that is enjoyable, not stressful. Some activities in this list include helping them with their homework, reading them stories, supervising them after school, playing board games, doing crafts, walking together, and sharing photos or video calls.

What if you do not have grandchildren, or they do not live nearby? Then other local resources like SilverSneakers® programs, senior centers, and public library technology courses can support healthy activities and help you gain additional digital knowledge. Keeping the body and the mind as active as possible.  

Other evidence-based recommendations to help older adults lower their risk of dementia include taking a daily multivitamin (study was with Centrum® Silver), controlling blood pressure and blood lipids such as cholesterol, and regulating blood sugar, especially with diabetes and prediabetes. 

Other prevention opportunities include eating colorful fruits and vegetables and including foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as fish and nuts, in your diet.  Research has shown a link to reducing the risk of dementia when individuals keep up to date on their vaccines.  This includes yearly flu shots, the 2-dose vaccine series for reducing the risk of shingles, the every 10-year TdaP (tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis), and the newer RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) vaccine. Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist for more information on vaccines. 

Another preventative component is to keep connections with people. Try to reduce loneliness and stress.  Connect to your community and keep actively involved.  Think about helping children in various locations such as schools, churches, preschools and groups such as Girl Scouts and Scouting. Some troop leaders would love for adults to come help with crafts, sing songs, or play games.  Find out how you can volunteer!

Your pharmacist can help lower the risk of dementia by reviewing medications that can affect memory.  

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ONU HealthWise offers the shingles vaccine along with RSV, flu, COVID-19 and other vaccinations.