People with a bulging waistline in mid-life could face a higher risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s in the senior years, a new study shows.
Previous research has shown that having an apple-shaped body increases the risk of diabetes, stroke and heart disease, but this is the first time it has been linked to dementia and Alzheimer’s.
In the study, which was published Wednesday by the journal Neurology, people who were both obese and had a large belly were three times more likely to be diagnosed with dementia in later years than those of normal weight and belly size. The risk of dementia nearly doubled in those who were a healthy weight but still had a bulging waist, suggesting that fat accumulated around the midline is particularly unhealthy for the brain.
“The take-home message from this study is that one should not only be concerned about their weight but where they carry their fat,” said Rachel Whitmer, the lead author of the study and a research scientist with Kaiser Permanente’s division of research in Oakland, Calif.
The findings are particularly concerning in light of the rise in obesity rates in the United States, Whitmer said. More than one-third of U.S. adults are obese and about half have abdominal obesity.
On the upside
“But the good news,” Whitmer added, “is that you can do something about it.” The type of fat that collects around the abdominal region is easy to accumulate but also easy to get rid of, she said.
Lenore Launer, chief of the neuroepidemiology division at the National Institute of Aging, said it’s too early to conclude that abdominal fat is a direct cause of dementia.
“These findings are an indicator that something is happening in the brain and more research needs to be done looking at the role obesity is playing in brain health when people get older,” Launer said.
In the study, Whitmer’s team followed up on 6,583 men and women who had their waists measured between 1964 and 1973, when they were between 40 and 45 years old. The measurement used, known as sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD), is the height of the belly taken while a person is lying down and is considered a good indicator of abdominal fat.
A SAD of 9.8 inches or more is considered a large belly. Using medical records, the researchers found that between 1994 to 2006, when the study participants were between 73 and 87 years old, 1,049 had been diagnosed with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Those who were both obese and had a large belly back in their 40s were 3.6 times more likely to be diagnosed later with dementia than those who’d had a healthy weight and belly size. Those who were a healthy weight but still had a large belly were 1.9 times more likely to develop dementia.
Source: MSN
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