Researchers Identify Dementia Risk Factors As Early As 20 Years In Advance

Researchers have identified early predictors of cognitive decline in adults as early as 20 years in advance as part of a new analysis.

A team of researchers with nonprofit research organization Rand used the cognition and dementia measures from the University of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a longitudinal survey of the U.S. population over age 50 that is conducted biennially.

According to the report’s authors, some of the key factors they found in identifying dementia early were an individual’s baseline cognitive abilities, health and functional limitations.

“We found that having poor physical health, a stroke, lower cognitive abilities, functional limitations, and particular genes strongly predict future incidence and prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia, which is in-line with prior literature,” the authors wrote.

The authors analyzed a total of 181 potential risk factors to identify and predict dementia occurring when individuals reached the age of 80. The researchers identified certain early and long-term risk factors that impact the chance of being diagnosed with dementia including childhood and job characteristics. Lifestyle and health behaviors also play a role in dementia diagnoses, suggesting changes to those factors could help reduce overall risk.

Among the most influential factors that lead to cognitive decline are poor physical health, a stroke, lower cognitive abilities, functional limitations, and particular genes, which the authors note is in line with previous writings.

“Some of our findings were in-line with prior literature,” the authors wrote. “We also identified predictors that either received less attention in the literature or had mixed results.”

People living in the U.S. South face “significantly higher chances of developing dementia,” which could be attributed to generally lower levels of education than the rest of the country, the researchers noted.

Other findings from the study conclude that even light exercise such as walking may be beneficial for cognitive health in the long run and reduce and individuals likelihood of developing dementia and that “individuals whose BMI index was 35 or more at age 60, those who had diabetes and those who did not have private health insurance at age 60 have an elevated chance of developing dementia in the next 20 years.”

The authors conclude their research can be used for both prediction, which would help with identifying the prevalence of dementia and allowing individuals to better prepare for the high costs associated with care, and prevention, which can suggest where other researchers could focus their efforts to quantify effects.

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