In a new study from Trinity College Dublin, researchers found that being overweight or obese can strongly reduce blood flow in the brain.
They also found that increased physical activity can positively modify, or even negate, this reduction in brain blood flow.
Reduced blood flow in the brain, or ‘cerebral hypoperfusion,” is an early mechanism in vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity is a worsening health crisis that has reached epidemic proportions globally, with over 1 billion adults overweight—and at least 300 million clinically obese.
It continues to be a major contributor to global rates of chronic disease and disability, affecting the overall quality of life, while placing increased strain on the immune system which is of the upmost importance given the current COVID-19 situation.
In the study, the team examined three different measures of obesity—body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio and waist circumference, as well as physical activity, in adults over 50 years.
Brain blood flow was measured using cutting-edge MRI scanning and analysis techniques. The findings reveal that being overweight or obese is linked to the reduced blood supply to the brain.
Increased BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, and waist size are linked to less blood supply to the brain.
A waist size increase of +1cm is linked to the same reduction in brain blood flow as +1 years of age. Higher levels of physical activity modify the associations between reduced brain blood flow and obesity.
Whereas brain blood flow is known to decline with age, in this study the negative influence of obesity on brain blood flow was shown to be greater than that of age.
The team recommends at least 1.5 to two hours of ‘being active’ throughout the day, engaging in activities that require moderate effort.
These include activities that cause one to breathe harder than normal, such as fast walking or cycling.
However, any increase in physical activity, particularly if integrated into daily or weekly habits, such as gardening, should help maintain and potentially improve brain blood flow.
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The study is published in Neurobiology of Aging. One author of the study is Dr. Silvin Knight.
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