New research suggests that verbal fluency may be specifically linked to longevity in older adults. Speech patterns could serve as a valuable marker of overall well-being.
Findings published in Clinical Psychological Science found that among various cognitive abilities tested, only verbal fluency showed a significant link to longer life.
The 2024 study led by Paolo Ghisletta of the University of Geneva, discovered this connection by analysing data from the Berlin Aging Study, collected just before the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
It tracked 516 people aged 70 to 105 from enrollment until their death, following some participants for up to 18 years.
Verbal fluency may be linked to longevity in older adults
GETTYGhisletta described it as a "rich and rare data set" that measured factors including dental health, stress levels, economic well-being and cognition.
Researchers tested four cognitive abilities: verbal fluency, perceptual speed, verbal knowledge and episodic memory.
One test measured verbal fluency by asking participants to name as many animals as possible within 90 seconds.
Perceptual speed assessed visual pattern recognition, whilst verbal knowledge measured vocabulary and episodic memory evaluated recall of personal experiences.
Ghisletta and his team developed a model relating cognitive changes to the risk of death, requiring expertise in joint multivariate longitudinal survival analysis.
Their findings revealed that verbal fluency alone was significantly linked to longevity.
The explanation behind this connection remains unclear, though Ghisletta noted verbal fluency relies on multiple cognitive abilities.
One popular theory, Ghisletta explained, is that "the physical body is inextricably linked to mental, emotional, and cognitive processes".
Verbal fluency may be a good measure of overall well-being
GETTY"All of these domains are just declining together, whether it's cognition, personality, emotions, or biological, medical decline in general," he said.
This makes verbal fluency a good measure of overall well-being.
Ghisletta noted this research answers questions he's had since the 1990s but only recently became possible to analyse.
He expressed optimism about future discoveries, saying: "It's a good time to be doing research. Although we are building up knowledge, every day, there's still so much here to discover."
