Obesity, an increasingly prevalent lifestyle disease, often occurs along with poor muscle mass.
This condition, called sarcopenic obesity, is evaluated based on the patients’ body mass index (BMI) and handgrip strength. Interestingly, sarcopenic obesity is known to increase the risk of cognitive impairment.
In a study from Juntendo University, scientists found that obesity combined with poor muscle mass may increase dementia risk.
Dementia, a cognitive condition where memory, thinking and social abilities progressively decline, is known to significantly affect the quality of life in elderly people.
In the study, the researchers examined 1,615 older Japanese adults aged 65 to 84 years participating in the Bunkyo Health Study.
The researchers divided the subjects into four groups based on their sarcopenia and obesity status: those with obesity, those with sarcopenia, those with sarcopenic obesity, and those without obesity or sarcopenia (control).
Sarcopenia or poor muscle strength was determined based on a handgrip strength of less than 28 kg in men and 18 kg in women, while obesity status was given to patients with a BMI greater than 25 kg/m2.
The team found that 59.4% of the population had neither obesity nor sarcopenia, 21.2% had obesity, 14.6% had sarcopenia, and 4.7% of the population had sarcopenic obesity.
The participants with sarcopenic obesity had the greatest rate of MCI and dementia, followed by those with sarcopenia, obesity, and finally the control group.
The team also found that sarcopenic obesity was linked to an increased risk of MCI and dementia compared with the absence of sarcopenia and obesity.
The study also showed that sarcopenia is strongly linked to dementia in women, but not in men.
The team says there is a strong correlation between sarcopenic obesity and dementia, scientists may develop new treatment methods to manage the condition, thereby even reducing the prevalence of dementia.
If you care about brain health, please read studies about how the Mediterranean diet could protect your brain health, and scientists find a new way to treat dementia.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about antioxidants that could help reduce dementia risk, and top risk factors you can change to prevent dementia.
The study was conducted by Dr. Yoshifumi Tamura et al and published in Clinical Nutrition.
Copyright © 2022 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
