Qingpeng Zhang from the University of Hong Kong and colleagues analyzed data from different countries and concluded that internet use is associated with higher mental well-being at the age of 50 and older. The analysis included more than 87.5 thousand people of this age from six international cohorts, which cover 23 countries with high and middle income levels. From 2.2 percent of participants (China) to 84.8 percent (Denmark) used the internet. Over a median period of six years, a total of almost 300 thousand observations were conducted. The results of the study were published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.
After adjusting for demographics, socioeconomic status, lifestyle, and physical health, internet use was associated with lower depression scores (AME = −0.09; 95 percent confidence interval = −0.012 to −0.07; I2 = 70.68 percent; H2 = 3.41), higher life satisfaction (AME = 0.07; 95 percent confidence interval = 0.05 to 0.10; I2 = 72.68 percent; H2 = 3.66) and better self-rated health (AME = 0.15; 95 percent confidence interval = 0.12 to 0.17; I2 = 73.53 percent; H2 = 3.78). In three countries—the UK, China, and the US—higher internet use was associated with better overall mental health.
