Overall health and wellness can affect long-term cognitive function
Key takeaways
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Metabolic health risks: A new study found that having metabolic syndrome in middle age is associated with a higher risk of developing dementia by 45 or younger.
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Health record analysis: The researchers analyzed medical records from nearly two million people and followed their health outcomes over the course of several years to determine the association between metabolic health and cognitive health.
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Adopt a healthy lifestyle: Based on the findings, the researchers encourage people to follow a healthy lifestyle to have the best chance at strong cognitive health in middle age and beyond.
A new study conducted by researchers from the American Academy of Neurology explored how metabolic syndrome can increase the likelihood of developing dementia before the age of 45.
Metabolic syndrome is a group of health problems that increase your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. To qualify for metabolic syndrome, you must have three or more of the following conditions: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, excess belly fat, low good cholesterol, and high blood sugar.
The researchers found a link between metabolic syndrome and a higher risk of early-onset dementia.
While most dementia is diagnosed in older age, young-onset dementia occurs while a person is still working and perhaps raising a family, study author Minwoo Lee, M.D., Ph.D., said in a news release. Our study found having metabolic syndrome in middle age is a risk factor for young-onset dementia.
The study
To understand the link between metabolic health and dementia, the researchers analyzed health records from nearly two million people between the ages of 40 and 60 enrolled in the Korean National Insurance Service.
Participants who had check-ups in 2009 were followed either through 2020 or until they reached age 65. The researchers tracked all of their major physical health markers over the course of the study, as well as their cognitive outcomes.
What are the health risks?
The researchers identified an association between metabolic syndrome and dementia.
Some of the key findings from the study include:
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Metabolic syndrome was associated with 24% higher risk of dementia at any age. However, poor metabolic health was a bigger cognitive risk for participants in their 40s than those in their 50s.
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The incidence rate of dementia was 0.86 cases per 1,000 person-years for those with metabolic syndrome. For those without, the incidence rate of dementia was 0.49 cases per 1,000 person-years.
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Women presented a greater risk than men; women with metabolic syndrome were 34% more likely to develop dementia, while men were 15% more likely.
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Each individual factor related to metabolic syndrome increased the risk of dementia. However, the more factors the participants had, the greater their risk. Those with all five components had a 70% higher risk of dementia.
Our findings suggest that lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome, such as eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking and reducing stress, may help reduce the risk of young-onset dementia, Dr. Lee said.
Future research that follows people over longer periods of time and uses brain scans to look for biomarkers of dementia is needed to confirm and expand upon our findings.
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Posted: 2025-04-28 20:07:06
