In a new study, researchers found that younger adults who are overweight or obese face a higher risk of dementia in their golden years.
They examined over 5,100 older adults who were involved in two long-term studies.
They found that women who were overweight between 20 and 49 years of age had nearly twice the risk of dementia after age 70.
And older men and women who were obese in those earlier years saw their risk jump 150%.
The findings build on prior studies that have linked excess weight during middle age to an increased risk of dementia among seniors.
The study suggests that adult life obesity is an important risk factor for dementia.
The research was conducted by a team at Columbia University in New York City..
In the research, the participants were enrolled in two long-running studies of older people, one launched in 1988 to track heart disease and the other in 1997 to track declining function.
Each study found cases of dementia. The team used a computer model to chart each participant’s lifetime body mass index (BMI), a standard measure of body fat based on height and weight.
BMI status was broken down according to three stages of life: early adulthood (ages 20 to 49); middle age (ages 50 to 69); and late-life (ages 70 to 89).
The link between BMI and dementia risk differed by gender and age, the analysis found.
For example, being overweight or obese in middle age did not appear to affect women’s dementia risk.
But men who were overweight during midlife saw their dementia risk rise 50% after age 70. And middle-aged obesity among men doubled late-life dementia risk.
Gender differences were also seen when looking at BMI during early adulthood.
For example, being overweight during that time did not appear to affect men’s dementia risk. But women had no such luck.
For those who were overweight between 20 and 49 years of age, dementia risk was 1.8 times higher after age 70.
In other respects, an expanding waistline had similar effects on dementia risk for both sexes. A higher BMI after age 70, for example, was linked to a lower risk for both sexes.
And being obese during early adulthood caused dementia risk in old age to more than double for men and women alike.
The team says irrespective of a person’s BMI in mid- or late life, being obese or sometimes overweight (while young) is associated with a higher dementia risk (after 70).
But scientists don’t know exactly why being overweight or obese might raise dementia risk.
It is possible that excess weight can have negative impacts on heart health and inflammation that may ultimately affect brain health.
One author of the study is Adina Zeki Al Hazzouri, an assistant professor of epidemiology.
The study was presented at an online meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association.
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