Dementia is a serious public health problem. The more extensive dementia knowledge is, the more conducive it is to early prevention and treatment of dementia. However, no assessment of the general population’s dementia awareness has been conducted so far in China. Thus, this study assessed the national public knowledge of dementia based on mobile internet in China. We assessed 10,562 national respondents recruited based on the most popular social networking service in China, WeChat and analyzed the data using quantitative methods. The overall correct rate of total dementia knowledge was 63.14%. Only half of the participants (50.84%) could identify risk factors accurately. The level of dementia knowledge was positively associated with high education, city residency, and experience of exposure to information on dementia. The sandwich generation (aged 20–60 years) had the highest level of dementia knowledge. Chinese people were found to have a low level of knowledge about dementia, especially those aged over 60 years, with low education and living in rural areas. Further educational programs and campaigns are needed to improve dementia knowledge, with greater focus on the older population as the target audience, emphasis on dementia risk factors as educational content, correcting misconceptions about dementia, and providing more experience of exposure to dementia.

Evidence demonstrates that Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection influences mental health through biological, psychological, and social mechanisms. In the post-pandemic period, defined as the time following the easing of major public health restrictions and the return to normalcy in daily life, university students represent a vulnerable population, experiencing a high prevalence of psychological problems due to the lingering influence of the pandemic on daily life and the emergence of long-term health consequences. There is an urgent need to understand these mental health symptoms and quantify their associated factors. A questionnaire was designed to investigate the mental health symptoms of anxiety, depression, and insomnia among university students in Wuhan, focusing on four key domains: individual, family, school, and pandemic. Logistic regression was employed to analyze the related factors and conduct attribution analysis. Of the 2,668 eligible participants, 2,112 (79.2%) self-reported Omicron infection, and 352 (16.7%) experienced Long-COVID. The prevalence of moderate-to-severe depression was 18.2% (95% CI: 16.8%-19.7%), anxiety was 8.9% (95% CI: 7.8% − 10.0%) and insomnia was 31.4% (95% CI: 29.6%-33.1%). Moderate-to-severe psychological symptoms among university students were associated with ten factors across the four key domains, with total weighted Population Attributable Fractions (PAFs) accounting for 60.1% of depression, 40.8% of anxiety, and 61.6% of insomnia. Individual factors had the highest PAFs, contributing 31.2% to depression, 23.8% to anxiety, and 25.1% to insomnia, followed by pandemic-related PAFs of 17.7% ,10.3%, and 21.9% for depression, anxiety, and insomnia, respectively. The psychological challenges confronting university students in Wuhan are alarmingly severe, with individual factors superimposed on the pandemic caused by SARS-CoV2 being the primary contributors. We propose targeted intervention measures: strengthening psychological counseling services, increasing communication and exchange to enhance students’ psychological resilience, raising awareness about mental health and lifestyle, alleviating students’ fear of sequelae, assisting university students with academic planning and career guidance, cultivating adaptability, and promoting overall physical and mental health.

Activity habits has been demonstrated to confer cognitive benefits. However, the extent to which these activities can mitigate cognitive disparities in older adults resulting from socioeconomic inequality remains unclear. We assessed cognitive performance and leisure activities in participants aged ≥ 65 years from 31 urban and 48 rural communities in Central China. A life-cycle composite socioeconomic status (SES) index incorporating education, occupational prestige, disposable income, and healthcare facility proximity categorized participants into low-, middle-, and high-SES groups. Logistic and linear regression models were employed to examine the associations between leisure activities and cognition, stratified by sex and age across different SES groups. This cross-sectional survey had a total of 8,597 eligible participants aged ≥ 65 years (mean age: 72.2 years, female: 55.1%). Compared to those of high SES, individuals with middle (OR = 1.86, 95% CI: 1.57–2.19) and low SES (OR = 3.62, 95% CI: 2.83–4.64) exhibited a higher prevalence of cognitive impairment and lower cognitive performance. Physical activity and cognitive leisure activity (PA and CLA) demonstrated a linear association with global and sub-domain cognitive performance, with a combined correlation with global cognition (β = 0.13, 95% CI: 0.10–0.15) being higher than that of CLA (β = 0.09, 95% CI: 0.07–0.11) and PA (β = 0.04, 95% CI: 0.02–0.06); our analysis revealed a stronger association between leisure activities and cognitive performance in low-SES individuals, with a notable effect size (combined: β = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.25–0.45; CLA: β = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.19–0.35 and PA: β = 0.09, 95% CI: 0.00–0.16) and in the > 70 years group, both (combined: β = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.31–0.59; CLA: β = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.24–0.47 and PA: β = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.02–0.22) and higher in men (combined: β = 0.39, 95% CI: 0.24–0.54; CLA: β = 0.30, 95% CI: 0.19–0.40 and PA: β = 0.09, 95% CI: -0.03–0.20). Our findings indicate that leisure activities are significantly associated with cognitive performance among older adults across all SES groups, particularly those in low SES categories. This study supports engagement in cognitively stimulating activities to prevent dementia in older adults of low SES.

Background: It is unclear how marital status moderates the association between multidomain leisure activities and the progression of cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults. Methods: Data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey with up to 10 years of follow-up were used. The study included participants aged ≥65 years without cognitive impairment at baseline. Cognitive function was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Linear mixed-effect models were used to evaluate the modifying effect of marriage on leisure activities (multiple types, frequency, and single type) and cognitive decline. Results: A total of 5286 participants (aged 79.01 ± 9.54 years, 50.0% women, and 61.4% rural residents) were enrolled. The results indicated that marital status moderates the relationship between leisure activities and cognitive decline. In the unmarried group, multi-type and high-frequency leisure activities were more strongly associated with slower cognitive decline. Specific activities such as gardening, reading, performing household chores, and playing cards were found to significantly contribute to cognitive protection exclusively within the unmarried group, with no such effect observed in the married group. Conclusions: Marital status affects the relationship between participation in multiple leisure activities and cognitive decline in cognitively intact elderly people. For unmarried older adults, regular participation in leisure activities may be an effective intervention.