Can Dancing Lower Your Dementia Risk? What the Research Says
Brain Matters · Defy Dementia, Episode 40
Dance works your body, your memory and your social life all at once. Here is what the science says, and what a ballet class for older adults in Toronto looks like from the inside.
The short answer
Dancing is linked to healthier brain aging, but it has not been proven to prevent dementia. Dance combines several things associated with lower dementia risk: physical activity, mental challenge, social connection and mood. Clinical trials in older adults show dance programs produce modest improvements in overall thinking skills.
- Any style counts. Consistency matters more than the type of dance.
- Seated dance works too, so limited mobility is not a barrier.
- People living with dementia, and their care partners, can take part.
Dance is one of the few activities that asks your body, your memory and your social brain to work at the same time. That combination is why researchers at Baycrest, a Toronto academic health sciences centre focused on aging, brain health and dementia, became interested in it, and why dance is the focus of Episode 40 of Baycrest's Defy Dementia podcast, hosted by science journalist Jay Ingram and Dr. Allison Sekuler, President and Chief Scientist of the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education and the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation.
Why is dancing good for your brain?
Dancing is good for the brain because it bundles physical exercise, cognitive challenge, social contact and emotional wellbeing into a single activity. Each of these is independently associated with healthier brain aging.
Dr. Rachel Bar, Director of Research and Health at Canada's National Ballet School, trained as a professional ballet dancer before completing a PhD in psychology. She describes dance as physical, cognitive and emotional at once. Dancers have to remember choreography, coordinate their rights and lefts, stay aware of who is in front, beside and behind them, and often tell a story while they move.
Joy is not a soft extra. Dr. Bar points out that many activities that are good for us are not fun, so people do them less than they should. Dance tends to hold on to people, and an activity you keep doing is the one that can make a difference over time.
Can dancing reduce your risk of dementia?
Dancing may help reduce dementia risk, but the evidence shows an association, not proof. It is best understood as one way to act on several known risk factors at once.
The 2024 report of the Lancet Commission on dementia prevention identified 14 modifiable risk factors and estimated that addressing all of them could prevent or delay up to 45% of dementia cases worldwide. That estimate assumes the risk factors are causal and can be removed entirely. Three of the 14 are ones dance directly targets: physical inactivity, social isolation and depression.
Two kinds of research point in the same direction:
Long-term observation. A 2003 study in the New England Journal of Medicine followed 469 community-dwelling adults over age 75 for a median of about five years. Among the leisure activities studied, reading, board games, playing musical instruments and dancing were associated with a lower risk of dementia.
Clinical trials. A 2020 systematic review in Age and Ageing pooled 11 randomized controlled trials involving 1,412 older adults. It found dance programs probably improve global cognitive function, with an average gain of about 1.6 points on a standard 30-point cognitive screening test, rated as moderate-certainty evidence.
What the evidence can and cannot tell us
Observational studies cannot rule out that people who are already healthier are more likely to dance. Trials show real but modest improvements in thinking skills over months, not proof that dance prevents dementia over decades. The honest summary: dance is a low-risk, enjoyable activity that lines up with what researchers know about protecting the brain.
Does dancing lower dementia risk by 76%?
No study has shown that dancing cuts dementia risk by 76%. On the podcast, Jay Ingram mentioned an Instagram post claiming house music reduces dementia risk by that amount. The 76% figure widely shared online appears to come from the 2003 New England Journal of Medicine study, where frequent dancing was associated with a much lower risk than dancing rarely or not at all.
That study measured a link in a small group of older adults. It did not test house music or any other style, and it cannot show cause and effect. Treat any single percentage attached to a lifestyle habit with caution.
What kind of dance is best for brain health?
No single style is best. According to Dr. Bar, research comparing different dance forms in older adults finds all of them beneficial. She adds that even improvised dancing to house music at a party can bring benefits, especially if you make dance a regular practice.
What matters most is making dance a practice. Structured classes add something useful: repetition. When the same dance is rehearsed week after week, participants get a sense of mastery and can put their energy into expression rather than just remembering steps.
Inside a dance class for older adults at Canada's National Ballet School
In a high-ceilinged studio lined with mirrors, 21 older adults sit in a circle of folding chairs. Among them is Michael Farewell, 78, who spent three decades installing office phone systems. He has taken the class since it started.
The hour begins seated, so no one is excluded. Participants greet each other through dance and mime, passing imaginary bouquets and balloons around the circle. Teacher Megan Ferris works through the feet and lower body first, then the upper body, before inviting anyone who wants to stand to try some simple ballet steps, holding a handrail for support. A pianist plays live throughout.
Decades of hauling cable left Michael with a very bad back, and he says the class helps his balance and coordination. He also notices what it does for his thinking.
The social side carries on after class, when the group regularly meets for coffee and scones in the school cafeteria. For Michael, the setting itself matters too: "What we're doing there are basic ballet steps, which is quite incredible for somebody of my age to say, yeah, I'm going to a ballet school and I do ballet."
What is Sharing Dance Older Adults?
Sharing Dance Older Adults is a dance program co-developed by Baycrest and Canada's National Ballet School to make high-quality dance accessible to older adults with a wide range of physical and cognitive abilities. It blends movement, music, storytelling and social connection, and participants can dance seated or standing.
The program now runs in community centres, long-term care homes and retirement residences, and classes are also available on YouTube. Learn more at Canada's National Ballet School.
Can people living with dementia benefit from dance?
Yes. Sharing Dance Older Adults offers an In Your Seat version designed for older adults with more significant cognitive and physical challenges, including dementia. Classes look much the same, sometimes slower and with more repetition, so every participant can experience a sense of accomplishment.
A systematic review pooling randomized trials in older adults with mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease or other dementias found dance interventions were associated with improvements in global cognition, memory and balance, and with reduced depression.
Dance can also restore something caregiving wears down. Some care partners use class time for respite. Others dance with the person they support, often a spouse or life partner.
How to start dancing for brain health
You do not need experience, a partner or a particular style. The Defy Dementia team suggests two simple steps: make dance a regular part of your life, and if you don't know where to start, look for a class near you or online that moves at your pace. If standing is difficult, seated programs such as Sharing Dance let you take part from a chair. And, in the words of the hosts, dance like no one is watching.
Frequently asked questions about dancing and dementia
Is dancing good for your brain?
Research suggests it is. Dance combines physical activity, mental challenge, social connection and enjoyment, all of which are linked to healthier brain aging. Pooled clinical trials in older adults show dance programs produce modest improvements in overall thinking skills, with the strongest evidence for global cognition and memory.
Does dancing reduce dementia risk by 76%?
Not proven. The widely shared 76% figure appears to come from a 2003 New England Journal of Medicine study that found frequent dancing was associated with lower dementia risk in adults over 75. It was an observational study, so it shows a link, not cause and effect, and it did not test any specific style of music.
What type of dance is best for brain health?
There is no single best style. Dr. Rachel Bar of Canada's National Ballet School says research comparing dance forms in older adults finds all of them beneficial. What matters most is dancing consistently, in a way you enjoy enough to keep doing.
Can you dance for brain health if you have limited mobility?
Yes. Programs such as Sharing Dance Older Adults, co-developed by Baycrest and Canada's National Ballet School, begin seated, and participants can stay in their chairs for the whole class. Seated dance still works the lower body, upper body and memory.
Can people living with dementia take part in dance classes?
Yes. Sharing Dance Older Adults offers an In Your Seat version designed for older adults with more significant cognitive or physical challenges, including dementia. Care partners can dance alongside the person they support, or use the class time as respite.
What is Sharing Dance Older Adults?
Sharing Dance Older Adults is a dance program co-developed by Baycrest and Canada's National Ballet School. It combines movement, music, storytelling and social connection, runs in community centres, long-term care homes and retirement residences, and is available free on YouTube.
Research referenced
- Verghese J, Lipton RB, Katz MJ, et al. Leisure activities and the risk of dementia in the elderly. New England Journal of Medicine. 2003;348(25):2508-2516. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa022252
- Effects of dance on cognitive function in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Age and Ageing. 2020. doi:10.1093/ageing/afaa270
- Livingston G, et al. Dementia prevention, intervention, and care: 2024 report of the Lancet standing Commission. The Lancet. 2024.
- Herron R, Bar R, Skinner M (eds). Dance, Ageing and Collaborative Arts-Based Research. Routledge.
Hear the full episode
Step inside a dance class for older adults with Michael Farewell, and hear Dr. Rachel Bar on why dance may be one of the most complete brain-health activities there is.
Listen to Episode 40 Support brain health research at BaycrestMeet the hosts of Defy Dementia
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