Decrease Your Risk of Cognitive Decline and Dementia – Avoid These 8 Controllable Risk Factors

A new study finds that the risk of dementia may be determined more by lifestyle rather than age.

According to recent research by Baycrest, adults without dementia risk factors such as smoking, diabetes, or hearing loss had higher brain health than those who were 10 to 20 years younger than them. According to research, just one dementia risk factor can increase a person’s cognition for up to three years.

“Our results suggest that lifestyle factors may be more important than age in determining one’s level of cognitive functioning. This is great news because there is a lot you can do to modify these factors, such as diabetes.” Management, addressing hearing loss, and getting the support needed to quit smoking,” says Dr. Annalise Laplum, a postdoctoral fellow at the Rotman Research Institute in Baycrest (RRI) and lead author of the study.

The research is one of the first to look at lifestyle risk factors for dementia across the lifespan.

“While most studies of this nature look at middle- and older-adulthood, we also included data from participants younger than 18 years of age, and we found that risk factors had a negative impact on cognitive performance at all ages. This is important.” because it means that risk factors can be addressed sooner,” says Dr Nicole Anderson, senior scientist at RRI, associate scientific director of the Kimmel Family Center for Brain Health and Wellness in Baycrest and its senior author. study.

This study has recently been published in the journal <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="

” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{” attribute=””>Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment, and Disease Monitoring, a journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, included data from 22,117 people aged 18 to 89 who completed the Cogniciti Brain Health Assessment, developed by Baycrest. Participants took the test in their own homes by going to the Cogniciti website. The test takes around 20 minutes to complete and consists of a background questionnaire and four cognitive tasks.

The researchers examined how eight modifiable risk factors for dementia—low education (less than a high school diploma), hearing loss, traumatic brain injury, alcohol or substance abuse, hypertension, smoking (currently or in the past four years), diabetes, and depression—affected participants’ performance on memory and attention tests.

Each factor caused a reduction in cognitive function that was equivalent to three years of age, with each additional factor having a similar effect. For instance, having three risk factors could result in a decline in cognitive function that is comparable to nine years of aging. As individuals aged, the consequences of the risk variables and their prevalence also rose.

“All in all, our research shows that you have the power to decrease your risk of cognitive decline and dementia,” says Dr. LaPlume. “Start addressing any risk factors you have now, whether you’re 18 or 90, and you’ll support your brain health to help yourself age fearlessly.”

Reference: “The adverse effect of modifiable dementia risk factors on cognition amplifies across the adult lifespan” by Annalise A. LaPlume, Ph.D., Larissa McKetton, Ph.D., Brian Levine, Ph.D., Angela K. Troyer, Ph.D. and Nicole D. Anderson, Ph.D., 13 July 2022, Alzheimer’s & Dementia Diagnosis Assessment & Disease Monitoring.
DOI: 10.1002/dad2.12337

This study was funded by the Alzheimer Society of Canada, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

With additional funding, the researchers could look further into the differences between normal agers and “super agers” – people who have the identical cognitive performance to those several decades younger than them.