Population surveys and research studies suggest that meaningful social connections are strong predictors of health and longevity. In other words, a sense of belonging to a social group and strong social bonds appear to be linked with better health and a longer lifespan.
Most earlier studies, however, primarily focused on the possible health-related benefits of receiving social support or interacting with others regularly. In contrast, the potential benefits of supporting and helping others remain largely unexplored.
Researchers at Georgetown University, Emory University and the University of Wisconsin–Madison recently carried out a study investigating the possibility that time spent supporting others is associated with brain health. Their findings, published in Translational Psychiatry, suggest that the brains of people who report spending more time supporting others appear younger (relative to their actual age) than those of people who report spending less time helping others.
How supporting others is reflected in the brain
To explore the link between helping others and brain health, the researchers analyzed data collected as part of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study. This is a large-scale research effort that gathered data related to health and well-being from thousands of adults living in the U.S.
“While previous research has mainly focused on the benefits of receiving social support, the neuroprotective potential of providing social support to others remains underexplored,” Minwoo Lee, James K. Rilling and their colleagues wrote in their paper.
“Using data from the MIDUS study, we tested whether total monthly hours spent providing instrumental and emotional support prospectively predict a brain age estimation gap (BrainAGE), a transdiagnostic biomarker of neurodegenerative disorders, psychiatric conditions and mortality.”
To estimate how old or young each participant’s brain appeared relative to their actual age, the team used a measure called BrainAGE. This is essentially a value representing the difference between a person’s estimated brain age and their actual age. The researchers then used statistical methods to probe the relationship between BrainAGE values and how much people reported helping others.
“BrainAGE was estimated with a machine-learning algorithm trained to predict chronological age from structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans,” they explained. “Combining hierarchical regression with bootstrapping and data-driven variable selection, we found that greater support provision was significantly associated with a younger-appearing brain for a given chronological age.”
The researchers found that among the MIDUS participants included in their analysis, those who reported spending more time helping others exhibited lower BrainAGE estimates. This link between supporting others and a younger-looking brain appeared to persist even when other factors were accounted for, including overall health, lifestyle, social circumstances and the support received from others.
“This association persisted after controlling for a comprehensive set of covariates, including demographic characteristics, health conditions, lifestyle factors and broader psychosocial contexts, including social support received,” wrote the authors. “Notably, the hourly measure of support provision explained incremental variance in BrainAGE beyond role-based indices such as caregiving status or grandparenthood.”
Possible implications for the study of human aging
The results of this study hint at a link between offering social support and brain health. However, they do not establish that helping others slows brain aging or prevents disease. Future studies could explore the link between helping others and brain health further, perhaps trying to determine how helping others might influence specific processes related to brain aging.
“Our findings highlight everyday prosocial behavior as a potential neuroprotective pathway in mid- to late adulthood, with implications for intervention and policies for healthy aging,” added the researchers.
If the findings are validated and confirmed with other cohorts, the study could potentially inform the creation of new interventions that foster prosocial behavior in adulthood or specific activities for seniors that involve helping others. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-linked-younger-adult-brains-accounting.html
Recent Comments