A blockbuster study reveals 15 risk factors for young dementia. How many do you have?Remember the 16-character tactic and stay away from them all
There has been a major breakthrough recently in the research on young people with mild dementia! A British study with a scale of 350,000 people summarized 15 risk factors that are significantly related to young dementia. The good news is that 14 of them can be worked on. How many of these 15 did you win? How to improve? Two authoritative and famous doctors on dementia jointly proposed a 16-character formula to avoid young dementia.
Dementia is not just for the elderly. According to statistics from the National Health Insurance Agency, about 8% of people seeking medical treatment for dementia in 2022 will be under the age of 65. The Taiwan Dementia Association estimates that there are currently more than 10,000 people. Dementia patients are working elites and family breadwinners aged between 45 and 64 years old.
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If you start early and do more, you can avoid young dementia. I believe no one will be unwilling to do it.
Unfortunately, because the number of young people with dementia is small, there have been relatively few large-scale, comprehensive risk factor studies.
In late December 2023, a British study published in the journal “JAMA Neurology” did just that, and it also brought good news. Wang Peining, a famous dementia doctor and director of the Memory and Brain Center of Yisen Clinic, pointed out that this study summarized 15 factors that are significantly related to the risk of young dementia. Only one of them is genetic, and the remaining 14 are more or less related. Control or prevent through changes in people’s behavior.
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15 factors significantly linked to the risk of young-onset dementia
1. Low level of formal education
2. Lower socioeconomic status
3. Carrying 2 apolipoprotein (ApoE) ε4 alleles
4. No alcohol at all
5. Have an alcohol use disorder (alcohol addiction)
6. Social isolation (visiting relatives and friends less than once a month)
7. Vitamin D deficiency
8. High C-reactive protein (CRP) value
9. Weak grip strength
10. Hearing impairment
11. Postural hypotension
12. Stroke
13. Diabetes
14. Heart disease
15. Depression
This study used data from the UK Biobank, started collecting cases from 2006 to 2010, and tracked them in 2018 and 2021. It included up to 350,000 participants with an average age of 55, and analyzed whether they were under 65. Dementia was diagnosed before the age of 10, which is also known as young-onset dementia. Different from other studies that explored a small number of risk factors, this study included multiple aspects, examined a total of 39 risk factors, and gradually clarified the interactions between factors through complex analysis methods, and finally summarized these 15 independent risk factors.
16-word secret to avoid young dementia: lifelong learning, controlling chronic diseases, healthy eating, and regular exercise
There are so many factors to consider that it’s hard to know where to start. Is there any way to take care of both?
Wang Peining suggested that issues such as educational attainment, socioeconomics, and social isolation can be improved through “lifelong learning.” Xu Wenjun, chairman of the Taiwan Dementia Association and physician at the Dementia Center of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, emphasized “healthy lifestyle” with “control of chronic diseases, healthy diet, and regular exercise” as the three key points. This can not only improve vitamin D deficiency, but also prevent cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression and other risk factors for young dementia, which has many benefits.
If you have the gene, you can’t give up on yourself. Wang Peining said that ApoE is a common risk gene for dementia in young and old people, but if other preventive and protective factors are done well, the gene may not necessarily manifest as a disease. People with this gene should start paying attention to dementia earlier. prevention.
If there is a disease, it must be treated; if there is an obstacle, it must be eliminated.
Among these 15 factors, 7 are related to other diseases, including high C-reactive protein values related to cardiovascular diseases or immune diseases, as well as hearing impairment, postural hypotension, stroke, diabetes, heart disease, and depression. Is it also a controllable factor?
“Forget it! If you have a disease, you must treat it, and if you have an obstacle, you must try to eliminate it.” Wang Peining gave an example. If you have had a stroke, you must prevent another stroke; if you have cardiovascular disease or depression, you must treat it well and take medicine to control it; if you have hearing impairment, , it is necessary to wear hearing aids to eliminate this obstacle.
Xu Wenjun reminded that modern life is noisy, and some people like to wear headphones for long periods of time, which accelerates hearing degradation. If you want to prevent dementia, you should protect your hearing from damage when you are young. If it is already damaged, you should actively treat it. Wang Peining also said that poor hearing will increase the burden on the brain. Because it is difficult to hear what others are saying, the brain has to spend more effort to “brain supplement”, which makes communication very tiring and increases the risk of social isolation.
To drink or not to drink?Moderate amount is best
There are two risk factors related to drinking. Alcohol addiction will increase the risk of dementia, which is consistent with the findings of the 2019 Stanford University study. However, it is not good to not drink at all. How to explain this?
Wang Peining speculated that in foreign countries, drinking a little wine is a very common social behavior and eating habit. People who do not drink at all may have other physical disease factors that were not explored in this study. They were told by doctors not to drink anymore. Perhaps these diseases Factors are also associated with young-onset dementia.
Xu Wenjun said that the relationship between drinking behavior and stroke is similar to the “J-shaped curve”, that is, the risk of moderate drinking is the lowest, but once excessive drinking occurs, the risk increases. It’s just that the line between moderation and excess is really difficult to determine. From a doctor’s perspective, Xu Wenjun still doesn’t encourage drinking. He can only say: “Pay attention to your physical condition and don’t drink alcohol deliberately.”
Further reading:
What are the causes of dementia? Learn about the 10 major symptoms, treatment and prevention at once
2024-01-29 07:34:49
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