New research suggests that stiff arteries—blood vessels that have lost their natural flexibility—may make the brain more vulnerable to early memory decline, even in older adults who show no signs of dementia.
The findings come from the large IGNITE clinical trial and were published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia.
As people age, the walls of large arteries can become less elastic, forcing the heart to work harder to pump blood throughout the body.
This extra strain can damage organs that depend on a steady blood supply, including the brain.
The new study found that older adults with stiffer arteries performed worse on memory and thinking tests and that these effects were especially strong when combined with signs of nerve fiber damage in the brain.
The research team analyzed data from 570 older adults who did not have cognitive impairment.
They measured two key factors: a blood biomarker called neurofilament light chain (NfL), which indicates nerve fiber damage in the brain, and arterial stiffness, which they assessed using a test known as carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity.
Higher NfL levels are often a sign of faster brain aging or early risk for cognitive decline.
Participants with greater arterial stiffness tended to perform more poorly on tests of episodic memory (recalling past events), working memory (holding and using information), and processing speed (how quickly the brain handles information).
Importantly, those with both stiffer arteries and higher NfL levels had the greatest memory problems. This finding suggests that stiff arteries might worsen the impact of nerve damage on brain function.
“These results highlight that aging of the brain isn’t just about nerve damage—it’s also about the health of the blood vessels that support it,” said Dr. Lewis Lipsitz, director of the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research and one of the study’s senior authors.
“Stiff arteries may make the brain more vulnerable to injury, which could accelerate memory decline.”
Lead author Dr. Amani Norling from Harvard Medical School explained that the combination of these two risk factors could be particularly harmful.
“If someone shows early signs of nerve fiber damage, having stiff arteries might put them at even greater risk of cognitive decline,” she said. “That’s why it’s so important to monitor both brain and vascular health as people age.”
The study was observational, meaning it only looked at data from a single point in time, so it can’t prove that stiff arteries cause memory loss.
However, the researchers believe that improving vascular health could help protect the brain. Managing blood pressure, cholesterol, and other cardiovascular risk factors through lifestyle changes or medical treatment may help slow cognitive aging.
Dr. Kirk Erickson, principal investigator of the IGNITE study and director of translational neuroscience at the AdventHealth Research Institute, said the research provides new insight into why some people experience faster memory loss than others.
“This work helps us understand how nerve fiber damage and vascular health interact,” he said.
“While more studies are needed, these findings may eventually guide new strategies to protect memory as we age.”
The IGNITE trial—short for Investigating Gains in Neurocognition in an Intervention Trial of Exercise—is an ongoing, multi-site study exploring how aerobic exercise and other lifestyle factors affect the aging brain.
The new results underscore the growing evidence that caring for the heart and blood vessels is also essential for protecting the mind.
If you care about brain health, please read studies about inflammation that may actually slow down cognitive decline in older people, and low vitamin D may speed up cognitive decline.
For more health information, please see recent studies about common exercises that could protect against cognitive decline, and results showing this MIND diet may protect your cognitive function, prevent dementia.
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