Men can lose their memory a decade earlier than women if they are obese, research shows.
Dementia affects millions of people around the world, slowly robbing them of their memory and independence, with people over 75 years of age most likely to be affected.
But a team from Imperial College London found that obesity can cause men in particular to develop the memory theft condition years earlier.
Researchers studied 34,000 adults in the UK Biobank aged 45 to 82 with obesity, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, all risk factors for dementia.
They found that in overweight men, brain volume and function began to decline between the ages of 55 and 74, while overweight women were most susceptible between the ages of 65 and 74, a decade later than men. men.
Adults with heart disease or obesity are more likely to develop dementia. Researchers say this is because it can trigger inflammation and poor blood supply to the brain and lead to cognitive decline.
the new studyPublished in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, it is the first to show how poor cardiovascular health affects the brains of different sexes and ages.
Throughout the study, participants’ brain volume and weight were monitored using scans to assess the influence of cardiovascular risk and fat on brain neurodegeneration (the progressive loss of neurons in the brain, which can cause dementia).
The researchers found that in overweight men, brain volume and function began to decline between the ages of 55 and 74, while overweight women were most susceptible between the ages of 65 and 74, a decade later.
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. The disease can cause anxiety, confusion and short-term memory loss.
The researchers found that higher levels of abdominal fat were associated with smaller brain volume, which is associated with a loss of brain cells and connections between cells.
This is important because research shows that people with dementia have smaller brain volume.
However, this relationship between abdominal fat and smaller brain volume was stronger in men than in women.
Professor Paul Edison from Imperial’s Department of Brain Sciences, who led the study, urged doctors to intervene early to help prevent dementia and specifically address cardiovascular risk and obesity in men decades earlier.
Researchers suggested that weight-loss injections, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, could be “repurposed” to treat Alzheimer’s, which is the most common type of dementia.
There are currently an estimated 982,000 people with dementia in the UK. This number is expected to increase to 1.4 million by 2040.
An estimated 6.7 million Americans age 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s dementia today. This figure could increase to 13.8 million in 2060.
But around 40 per cent of dementia cases are thought to be preventable, according to the NHS.
Experts say making lifestyle changes, such as losing weight, exercising more or quitting smoking, could prevent the condition.