Did the pandemic age our brains? New study reveals ‘shocking' truth

Time of India

5 days ago

We've all been there. Tired, drained from our daily routines, which hardly ever left a dent in our energy levels before. What do we mean by 'before'? It's BC, but with rather a modern twist – Before COVID.
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Many of us have casually attributed this exhaustion and lethargy to the aftereffects of 'Long Covid', but this time we have solid proof.
A new study from the UK suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic may have aged our brains faster, even for people who never got sick from the virus.
Researchers found signs of premature brain aging in people's brain scans during the pandemic years of 2021 and 2022.
Interestingly, this change may be linked more to the overall stress and lifestyle disruptions of the pandemic than to the virus itself.
The findings raise important questions about how events like global crises can affect our mental and neurological health.
What does the study say
A new study published in
suggests that during the height of the pandemic in 2021 and 2022, people's brains showed signs of premature aging, such as shrinkage in gray matter, regardless of whether they were infected with the virus. The findings come from a large-scale analysis of brain scans in the UK, offering some of the clearest evidence yet that the pandemic's psychological and social toll affected neurological health.
The research, led by Ali-Reza Mohammadi-Nejad, a neuroimaging expert at the University of Nottingham, used data from the UK Biobank, a health resource that has been tracking brain scans and health outcomes from over 500,000 volunteers since 2006.
Signs of aging without any illness
Analyzing brain scans from nearly 1,000 individuals, researchers found that the average person showed signs of accelerated brain aging, equivalent to about 5.5 months of extra aging.
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The changes were more pronounced in men and individuals from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds.
'These findings highlight that brain health is not shaped solely by illness, but also by broader life experiences,' Mohammadi-Nejad said to NBC News in an email interview. 'The cumulative stress of the pandemic period itself appears to have left a mark on our brains, even in the absence of COVID-19 infection.'
Brain shrinkage is a normal part of aging, particularly in the gray matter, which plays a critical role in memory, decision-making, and emotional regulation. However, accelerated loss in this area can raise the risk of future cognitive issues, including memory problems or impaired judgment.
How the study was conducted
To understand whether the pandemic had any measurable impact on brain structure, researchers compared two groups:
564 participants who received both of their brain scans before the pandemic.
432 participants who had one scan before and another after the pandemic began.
By developing a model of what normal aging looks like using pre-pandemic data from more than 15,000 people, researchers were able to measure how much additional aging had occurred during the pandemic years.
The second group, whose follow-up scans took place mostly in 2021 and 2022, showed significantly more aging in brain structure compared to the control group.
The aftereffects of infection
For individuals who had tested positive for COVID-19, researchers observed additional deficits in cognitive abilities, including slower processing speeds and reduced mental flexibility. These findings align with earlier research pointing to neurological effects of the virus itself.
'The most intriguing finding in this study is that only those who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 showed any cognitive deficits, despite structural aging,' said Dr.
Jacqueline Becker (to NBC News), a clinical neuropsychologist and assistant professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. 'This speaks to the effects of the virus itself, which may help explain lingering syndromes such as long COVID.'
However, it remains unclear whether those who experienced brain structure changes without infection will eventually show similar cognitive symptoms.
Brain aging in teens and young adults
The findings echo earlier research from the University of Washington, which reported in 2024 that teenagers' brains also appeared to age faster during the pandemic.
That study found that boys' brains aged 1.4 years, while girls' brains aged 4.2 years, likely due to increased stress and isolation.
Other studies have also found that environmental stressors, such as isolation in remote areas like Antarctica, can lead to brain shrinkage, suggesting a broader connection between lifestyle factors and brain health.
Experts' take
While the study offers compelling evidence, experts caution that it remains unclear whether these changes will have long-term effects.
'This is still a hypothesis,' said Dr. Adam Brickman, professor of neuropsychology at Columbia University, who was not involved in the study. 'We don't know yet whether these effects are reversible or if they will persist over time.'
Still, Brickman and others agree that people can take proactive steps to support their brain health. Habits like regular physical activity, adequate sleep, social engagement, and managing stress have been shown to support healthy brain aging.
'We know exercise is good for the brain,' Brickman added. 'So is keeping blood pressure in check and maintaining strong social connections.'
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