一项2024年美国研究发现，出租车和救护车司机死于阿尔茨海默病的风险显著低于其他职业[1]。该研究分析了2020年1月至2022年12月期间近900万份美国死亡证明，涵盖443种职业，发现这类司机中约1/100人死于该病，远低于全体人群1/60的比例[1]。
研究者认为，持续的实时导航工作是降低风险的关键因素，而非驾驶本身[1]。这一发现的理论基础来自一项2000年伦敦研究：出租车司机必须掌握方圆6英里内超过25,000条街道（称为"The Knowledge"），耗时3至4年，相关研究发现他们的后海马体灰质体积会显著增加[1]。此外，2023年发表的一项基于22,500多人的机器学习模型研究表明，环境空间复杂性与阿尔茨海默病发病风险相关，该模型根据空间复杂性预测高发地区的准确率达84%[1]。
A 2024 American study has found that taxi and ambulance drivers face significantly lower risk of dying from Alzheimer's disease compared to workers in nearly any other profession.[1] The research analyzed nearly 9 million death certificates issued between January 2020 and December 2022, spanning 443 occupations, and revealed that approximately 1 in 100 taxi and ambulance drivers died of Alzheimer's disease, substantially below the general population rate of 1 in 60.[1] Researchers attribute this protective effect primarily to the continuous real-time navigation work required in these professions, rather than driving itself, as this cognitive activity exercises the brain's hippocampus.[1]
The findings align with earlier research on London taxi drivers, whose professional licensing requires mastery of over 25,000 streets within a six-mile radius—a qualification known as "The Knowledge" that takes 3 to 4 years to complete.[1] A 2000 study of these drivers found that their posterior hippocampal gray matter volume increased significantly, suggesting that sustained spatial navigation strengthens this brain region.[1] Supporting this mechanism, a 2023 machine learning model based on data from over 22,500 individuals achieved 84% accuracy in predicting Alzheimer's disease prevalence in regions based on environmental spatial complexity.[1]