A new study conducted by researchers at Oxford Population Health reveals a significant association between poor metabolic health and the risk of developing dementia.
Metabolic health refers to the body’s ability to efficiently process nutrients and maintain a stable internal environment.
The study, published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia, highlights the importance of identifying and managing metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that can lead to metabolic health issues.
Metabolic Syndrome and Its Components
Metabolic syndrome encompasses a set of conditions that include:
- High waist circumference
- High triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood)
- High blood pressure
- High blood glucose (sugar) levels
- Low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, often referred to as “good” cholesterol
When an individual has three or more of these conditions, they are considered to have metabolic syndrome.
This syndrome has previously been associated with an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. Approximately 20-25% of adults worldwide live with metabolic syndrome.
Researchers examined data from over 176,000 participants in the UK Biobank study.
These individuals were aged 60 or older and were free of dementia at the study’s outset, ensuring they were at risk of developing dementia during the study. The researchers tracked their health over a 15-year period through medical records.
Key Findings
The study’s key findings include:
- 42% of participants had metabolic syndrome at the study’s start.
- High blood pressure was the most common condition in those with metabolic syndrome (96%), followed by high triglycerides (74%), low HDL cholesterol (72%), high waist circumference (70%), and high blood glucose (50%).
- Over the 15-year period, 5,255 participants developed dementia.
- Participants with metabolic syndrome had a 12% higher risk of developing dementia compared to those without metabolic syndrome.
- The risk of dementia increased with the number of metabolic syndrome conditions. For individuals with four or five of these conditions, the risk of dementia rose by 19% and 50%, respectively.
Implications
The study’s findings suggest that identifying and managing metabolic syndrome could play a crucial role in reducing the risk of developing dementia later in life.
Since each component of metabolic syndrome is modifiable through lifestyle changes or medical interventions, this cluster of conditions presents a promising target for prevention.
Dr. Thomas Littlejohns, Senior Epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health, emphasizes the importance of considering the role of multiple conditions, especially when all five components of metabolic syndrome are present.
Addressing metabolic health through early intervention and lifestyle modifications may hold the key to reducing the global burden of dementia.
If you care about brain health, please read studies about vitamin D deficiency linked to Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia, and blood pressure problem at night may increase Alzheimer’s risk.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about antioxidants that could help reduce dementia risk, and vitamin D could help lower the risk of autoimmune diseases.
The research findings can be found in Alzheimer’s & Dementia.
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