Researchers in the US have found that seven healthy habits and lifestyle factors may play a role in lowering the risk of dementia in people with the highest genetic risk. The findings were published in the journal Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The seven cardiovascular and brain health factors, known as the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7, are: being active, eating better, losing weight, not smoking, maintaining a healthy blood pressure, controlling cholesterol, and reducing blood sugar. The study looked at 8,823 European Americans and 2,738 African Americans who were followed for 30 years. People had an average age of 54 at the beginning of the study. Participants completed questionnaires to assess how well they followed the Life’s Simple 7 habits. Total scores ranged from 0 to 14, with 0 representing the most unhealthy score and 14 representing the healthiest score. Researchers also assessed their genetic risk of dementia, including whether they carried the APOE-e4 gene.
The average score among Europeans and Africans was 8.3 and 6.6 respectively. Over the 30-year study period, more than 2,200 of the participants developed Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia. Results showed that European people with the highest scores in the Life’s Simple 7 habits had a lower risk of dementia, including among those at high genetic risk, by the end of the study. Among Africans a similar pattern of declining dementia risk across among those with higher scores on the lifestyle factors was identified. However, researchers said the smaller number of participants in this group limited the findings, so more research is needed. https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000200520