Abdominal fat in women is associated with an increased risk of dementia

26-06-2020 by Mirai

According to a study by University College London, obese people are more likely to suffer dementia than others. An even greater association in women.

Another good reason to take care of your line. According to a new study from University College London, obesity is associated with an increased risk of dementia. A correlation that has existed for almost fifteen years according to the conclusions published in the International Journal of Epidemiology. According to the authors, obese people in late adulthood have a 31% higher risk of dementia than those with a normal body mass index. And the risk is particularly high for women.

"BMI and waist circumference must be monitored to avoid metabolic disturbances. Therefore, it is recommended to reduce weight to optimal levels by adopting healthy and balanced eating habits, such as the Mediterranean diet, adequate physical exercise and reduced alcohol consumption during adulthood. "Recommends Dr. Dorina Cadar, lead author of this study.

To reach these conclusions, the researchers collected data from 6,582 people in a representative sample of the English population. At the time of this study, participants were 50 years of age or older. Scientists have found that people with a BMI of 30 or more at the beginning of the study period had a 31% higher risk of dementia, with an average follow-up of 11 years, than those with a BMI between 18, 5 and 24.9.

There was also a significant difference between the sexes in the risk of dementia associated with obesity. In fact, women suffering from abdominal obesity had a 39% higher risk of dementia compared to those with a normal level. A confirmed correlation regardless of many factors: age, tobacco, educational level, presence of certain genes, diabetes or hypertension. When the BMI and waist circumference were examined in combination, obese study participants of both sexes had a 28% higher risk of dementia than those in the normal range.

A link between obesity and dementia to explain

Why obesity can cause dementia? According to previous studies, obesity could lead to an increased risk of dementia through its direct influence on cytokines (cellular signaling proteins) and hormones derived from fat cells, or indirectly due to an adverse effect on vascular risk factors. . According to some researchers, excess body fat can increase the risk of dementia through metabolic and vascular pathways that contribute to the accumulation of amyloid proteins or brain damage.

"It is possible that the association between obesity and dementia could potentially be explained by other conditions, such as hypertension or anticholinergic treatments. The question of the search for the existence of an interactive effect between obesity and other quarantine risk factors, such as hypertension, diabetes and APOE E4 carrier status, related to dementia, was not studied in this study. It will be in future work, "reports Yuxian Ma (UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care), the first author of the study.

For his part, the co-author, Professor Andrew Steptoe and director of the English Longitudinal Study of Aging, recalls that dementia represents an important health challenge of the current century in view of the aging population. "By identifying factors that may increase dementia risk that are influenced by lifestyle factors, we hope that substantial, but certainly not all, cases of dementia can be prevented with public health interventions."