Chronic stress may hit women's brain power harder than men's as they age.In a new study of nearly 3,900 adults age 50 and older without dementia, women with higher levels of ongoing stress had steeper declines in attention and language than men.Researchers say it’s not yet clear why — or whether the difference is tied to biology, such as hormones, or social factors like gender roles.Hispanic participants with higher stress also had greater memory decline than non-Hispanic White participants.But there was an encouraging finding across all groups: greater social support was linked to less decline in attention.Participants reported long-term stress from money, work, health, relationships and caregiving, along with how supported they felt. Their thinking skills were then tested about every two years.Because the study was observational, it can’t prove cause and effect. Still, researchers say the findings highlight potentially important factors in healthy brain aging.As one author put it, “Social connections and stress are parts of everyday life that may be possible to change.”Next, researchers want to determine whether reducing stress or strengthening meaningful support networks can help preserve cognitive function as people age, and better understand how these factors may influence the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.Source: Alzheimer’s & DementiaAuthor Affiliations: Wake Forest University School of Medicine, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Virginia Commonwealth University.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter