WEB DESK, June 29(ABC): A new study sheds some light on the potential for preventing dementia.
Researchers in Sweden say that having more than one cardiometabolic disease at the same time doubles your risk for developing dementia.
Cardiometabolic conditions include heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
The study started with 2,577 people who showed no signs of dementia. The participants were over the age of 60, lived in central Stockholm, and were part of the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care.
The researchers followed the study participants for 12 years with both medical exams and cognitive tests.
The scientists say they discovered that having more than one cardiometabolic diagnosis accelerated the speed of cognitive decline and doubled the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia.
Compared to people with no cardiometabolic disease, having more than one cardiometabolic disease also expedited the development of cognitive impairment and dementia by about two years. The risk was even greater with more cardiometabolic diseases.
The researchers noted that the study participants who had just one cardiometabolic disease did not show a significantly higher risk for dementia.
