On the one hand, anxiety, both chronic and at its first manifestation, is under scrutiny for a possible negative impact on the risk of dementia (with the good news that leaving it behind seems to cancel the effect). On the other, body fat, stored in the belly or arms, which could be associated with a greater probability of developing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, compared to those with low levels of fat in these areas. These are new factors that science is focusing on to identify targeted interventions that can protect those who are most exposed from these pathologies and help a healthier aging. Two different studies explore these new elements to work on.
The first is published in the ‘Journal of the American Geriatrics Society’ and is based on 2,132 people – average age 76 – who participated in an Australian study (Hunter Community Study) and were followed for an average of 10 years. The authors’ analysis revealed that the presence of chronic anxiety and new-onset anxiety were associated with 2.8 and 3.2 times higher risks of dementia, respectively. Even higher risks were observed in adults with anxiety before the age of 70. People whose anxiety resolved, however, did not have a higher risk of dementia than people completely without current or past anxiety problems. “The results – observes corresponding author Kay Khaing, of Newcastle University – suggest that anxiety could be a new risk factor to target in the prevention of dementia and also indicate that treatment of this pathology could reduce the risk”.
A second study, published in ‘Neurology’, instead investigates body composition. The authors, in addition to the negative role of fat on the arms and belly, also found that people with a high level of muscle strength are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s than people with low muscle strength. “These neurodegenerative diseases affect more than 60 million people worldwide and the number is expected to increase as the population ages,” warns the study’s author, Huan Song, an expert at Sichuan University in Chengdu, China. “So it is essential to identify ways to modify risk factors and develop some preventive tools. The study highlights the potential of improving body composition to reduce people’s risk of developing these diseases.”
“Targeted interventions to reduce abdominal and arm fat while promoting healthy muscle development may be more effective at protecting against these diseases than general weight control,” Song suggests. The study involved 412,691 people with an average age of 56, who were followed for an average of nine years. At the start of the study, body composition measurements, such as waist and hip measurements, grip strength, bone density, and fat and lean mass, were taken.
During the study, 8,224 people developed neurodegenerative diseases, mostly Alzheimer’s, other dementias, and Parkinson’s. Male participants with high levels of belly fat developed neurodegenerative diseases at a rate of 3.38 cases per 1,000 person-years, compared with 1.82 cases per 1,000 person-years, the rate among those with low levels of belly fat. For female participants, the rates were 2.55 for participants with high levels of fat and 1.39 for those with low levels. After adjusting for other factors that could influence disease rates, such as high blood pressure, smoking, alcohol use, and diabetes, researchers found that overall, people with high levels of belly fat were 13 percent more likely to develop these diseases than people with low levels of belly fat.
People with high levels of arm fat were 18 percent more likely. People with high muscle strength were 26 percent less likely. The relationship between these body compositions and neurodegenerative conditions was partly explained by the onset of cardiovascular diseases such as heart disease and stroke after the study began, which “highlights the importance of managing these cardiovascular diseases immediately to help prevent or delay the development of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, or other degenerative diseases,” Song says. One limitation of the study is that participants were mostly white from the United Kingdom, so the findings may not apply to other populations, but the work offers a new factor to explore further, to see if it can help develop increasingly effective preventive strategies.
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