Obesity Can Increase Dementia Risk By Up To 80 Percent

Obesity may increase adults’ risk for having dementia, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Their analysis of published obesity and dementia prospective follow-up studies over the past two decades shows a consistent relationship between the two diseases.

Obesity increases the risk of dementia in general by 42 percent, Alzheimer's by 80 percent and vascular dementia by 73 percent, the new review suggests. Being underweight increases the general dementia risk by 36 percent. But researchers who carried out an international review of research since 1995 found no elevated risk in people who were normal or overweight

Previously published research defines dementia as not a single disorder, but a number of syndromes characterized by diverse behavioral, cognitive, and emotional impairments. The most common form is Alzheimer’s disease, with an estimated 5 million adults living with the disease in the United States alone.
“Currently, Alzheimer’s disease is the eighth leading cause of death among the elderly population in the United States. While more studies are needed to determine optimal weight and biological mechanisms associated with obesity and dementia, these findings could potentially decrease the number of people diagnosed with dementia and lead to an overall better quality of life,” said May A. Beydoun, a former postdoctoral research fellow at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.