Large abdominals in middle age will increase the risk of dementia

According to a recent study, people with larger stomachs in their 40s tend to have more dementia when they turn 70.

The study was based on 6,583 people aged 40-45 in Northern California who measured abdominal fat. On average 36 years later, 16% of the test participants were diagnosed with dementia. The study found that people with the highest amount of abdominal fat tend to develop dementia nearly three times more than those with the lowest amount of fat in the abdomen .

Dr. Rachel A. Whitmer - author of this study, a Research Institute researcher Kaiser Permanente Research in Oakland, CA, and also a member of the American Academy of Neurology - said: 'We also find that 50% of these older Americans have too much fat in their abdomen, which is a very worrying finding. So research is needed to determine what are the mechanisms between abdominal dementia and obesity. '

Having a large belly ring increases your risk of dementia regardless of whether the participants were normal, overweight or obese, and regardless of current health conditions like illness diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular disease.

(Photo: iStockphoto / Simone van den Berg) People who are overweight and have a large belly circumference 2.3 times and those who are both obese and have a belly circumference of 3.6 times are more likely to develop dementia Remember more than those with normal weight and waist circumference. People who are overweight or obese but don't have a big waistline will have an 80% chance of developing dementia.

Middle-to-middle abdominals also increase the risk of diabetes, stroke and coronary artery disease, but this is the first time researchers have proven it also increases the risk of dementia.

In this study, women with colored people, smokers, people with high blood pressure, cholesterol or diabetes, and those who did not have a high school diploma were likely to be obese. more than men.

Comprehensive follow-up studies show that not the connection between abdominal obesity and dementia is caused by a large belly, but due to a variety of complex health-related behaviors in which Abdominal obesity is only one part.

'Screenings show that changes in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease (a form of dementia) can start from a young age to middle age, and another study also indicates "The fat-rich abdomen in old age is associated with more atrophy," Whitmer said. 'The implication of these findings is that the dangerous effects of obesity in the abdomen of the brain may have started long before dementia signs appeared.'

The study was published online in the Journal of Neurology - the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, March 26, 2008.