Study finds high blood pressure may be one driver of dementia risk

By Stephen Beech

Overweight people with high blood pressure are at higher risk of dementia, warns a new study.

Danish researchers found that obesity and high blood pressure - also known as hypertension - both increase the risk of developing the debilitating condition.

And the study points to high blood pressure as a driving factor.

Dementia is a growing global public health challenge worldwide, with no cure currently available.

People with dementia experience a severe decline in mental abilities - including memory, thinking and reasoning.

The most common forms of dementia are Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia and mixed dementia.

Figures suggest that the number of people in the UK with dementia is expected to rise to more than 1.4millino by 2040.

Study author Professor Ruth Frikke-Schmidt, of Copenhagen University Hospital and the University of Copenhagen, said: “In this study, we found high body mass index (BMI) and high blood pressure are direct causes of dementia.

More from this section

+3

Study finds high blood pressure may be one driver of dementia risk

+3

Man dies of flesh-eating virus after symptoms dismissed as tonsillitis

+3

Netflix and ill? Binge-watching linked to loneliness

“The treatment and prevention of elevated BMI and high blood pressure represent an unexploited opportunity for dementia prevention.”

For the study, published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, researchers analysed data from participants in the UK and Copenhagen and identified a causal link between higher body weight and dementia.

The research team were able to establish a direct causal link between high BMI and dementia because they used a method called a Mendelian randomisation design that mimics a controlled trial.

The researchers found that much of this increased dementia risk appeared to be driven by high blood pressure, suggesting that preventing or treating obesity and high blood pressure could help reduce dementia risk.

Frikke-Schmidt said: “This study shows that high body weight and high blood pressure are not just warning signs, but direct causes of dementia.

“That makes them highly actionable targets for prevention.”

She added: “Weight-loss medication has recently been tested for halting cognitive decline in early phases of Alzheimer’s disease, but with no beneficial effect.

"An open question that remains to be tested is if weight-loss medication initiated before the appearance of cognitive symptoms may be protective against dementia.

"Our present data would suggest that early weight-loss interventions would prevent dementia, and especially vascular-related dementia."