Associations between Recreational Screen Time and Brain Health in Middle-Aged and Older Adults: A Large Prospective Cohort Study

Objectives To investigate the associations of recreational screen time with risks of brain-related disorders (dementia, stroke, or Parkinson's disease) and neuroimaging features. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting and Participants A total of 407,792 participants from the UK Biobank who were free of dementia, stroke, or Parkinson's disease at enrollment (2006–2010). Methods TV viewing and time spent using the computer were self-reported at baseline. Among a subsample of 40,692 participants, neuroimaging features were measured by magnetic resonance imaging in 2014. Data were analyzed using Cox proportional hazard models, restricted cubic spline, and general linear regression models. Results During a median follow-up of 12.6 years, 5227 incident dementia, 6822 stroke, and 2308 Parkinson's disease cases were identified. Compared with TV viewing >0–1 h/d, watching TV ≥5 h/d was associated with higher risks of dementia (hazard ratio [HR], 1.44; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.28–1.62), stroke (HR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.01–1.25), and Parkinson's disease (HR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.06–1.54). Moreover, we observed inverse associations between TV viewing time and both gray matter volume and hippocampus volume (Ptrend <.001). However, we did not observe the significant associations between discretional computer use and brain-related disorders or neuroimaging features. Conclusions and Implications Our findings suggest that high TV viewing time is associated with increased risk of various brain-related disorders, highlighting recreational TV viewing could have an important impact on brain-related health.