Vision loss and high cholesterol recognised as dementia risk factors | New Scientist
The Lancet Commission on dementia prevention, intervention, and care has updated its list of modifiable risk factors for dementia, now totaling 14. The latest report adds high cholesterol after age 40 and vision loss to the previously identified 12 risk factors. These factors are:
- Alcohol abuse
- Smoking
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Air pollution
- Brain injury
- Physical inactivity
- Depression
- Social isolation
- Hearing loss
- Lower levels of education
- High cholesterol after age 40
- Vision loss
The report, presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, emphasizes that reducing these risks from childhood could cut dementia cases by nearly half. Experts advocate for large-scale governmental interventions to mitigate these risks, highlighting potential social and economic benefits, such as saving around £4 billion in England alone.
Dementia encompasses conditions like Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and mixed dementia. With the global dementia population projected to triple by 2050, health policies must address these risk factors urgently. This approach is particularly crucial in lower-income countries where increasing life expectancy is driving a dementia surge, costing over $1 trillion annually.
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