Normal blood pressure, no diabetes, avoiding smoking: Three midlife habits linked to 13 more dementia-free years

Maintaining normal blood pressure, avoiding diabetes, and never smoking in midlife may add up to 13 extra dementia-free years, according to new research.

Midlife habits

The choices you make during your midlife years can affect your brain health in the future. A recent study published in Neurology Open Access revealed that people whose blood pressure was normal, didn't have diabetes and never smoked in their middle years lived an average 12.6 years longer without developing dementia. Researchers said the results underscore the need to maintain vascular health for brain function and slow cognitive decline.

Three particular habits that safeguard the brain

The study tracked 12,409 patients for a median of 26 years and examined the effects of three prevalent vascular risk factors on the rate of dementia-free survival. Those who did not have high blood pressure, diabetes or a history of smoking were much less likely to have dementia at an early age. But not only did those with multiple risk factors develop dementia earlier as experts warn that they may also have a greater risk of dying early. The researchers wrote, "Maintaining optimal midlife vascular health was associated with up to 12.6 additional dementia-free survival years, reflecting both higher dementia hazard and markedly higher competing mortality."

Blood pressure, diabetes and smoking issues are important

All three risk factors affect blood vessels negatively that deliver oxygen and nutrients to the brain. High blood pressure can cause blood vessels to be weakened and narrowed, diabetes can decrease blood flow and smoking can cause inflammation and damage to blood vessels. Scientists caution that all of these combined could raise the chances of cognitive decline and dementia over time. The results were adjusted for age, sex, race, physical activity and the presence of the gene linked to Alzheimer's disease (APOE4). What is concerning about these results is that despite these factors the association was the same.

Expert stresses early prevention

It is important to address these risk factors at midlife and not old age, said Josef Coresh, epidemiologist at New York University (NYU) Langone Health and a lead author of the study. He added, "Our findings argue that people need to actively avert these factors in midlife as a strategy for preserving brain health for more than a decade."

The study also revealed that women were less likely to develop dementia than men and that there were significant racial differences underscoring the importance of targeted dementia prevention initiatives in vulnerable communities. While there's no definitive evidence that researchers believe these risk factors can stop dementia from occurring because there's strong evidence that healthier vascular health correlates with later onset of the disease. Experts suggest that even a couple of years' delay in dementia could dramatically improve the quality of life and cut the escalating health care burden as almost 10 million new dementia cases occur globally each year.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before making lifestyle or treatment decisions based on these findings.