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 The risk of dementia was reduced by 32% in people with a high
genetic risk if they had followed a healthy lifestyle, compared to
those who had an unhealthy lifestyle, the study, published in the
medical journal JAMA on Sunday, found.
People with high genetic risk and an unhealthy lifestyle were almost
three times more likely to develop dementia than those with low
genetic risk who also lived healthily.
"Our findings are exciting as they show that we can take action to
try to offset our genetic risk for dementia," said Elzbieta Kuzma, a
researcher at Britain's University of Exeter who co-led the study.
Dementia - a brain-wasting disease - affects around 50 million
people globally, with nearly 10 million new cases annually - a
figure that is set to triple by 2050, according to the World Health
Organization.
Kuzma's team analyzed data from almost 197,000 adults of European
ancestry who were aged 60 and older. They found 1,769 cases of
dementia over a follow-up period of eight years and grouped those
cases into people with high, medium and low genetic risks for
dementia.
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To assess lifestyle, the researchers looked at the participants'
self-reported diet, physical activity, smoking and alcohol
consumption.
Non-smokers who took regular exercise and had a good diet with
moderate alcohol intake were considered to have the healthiest
lifestyles - and these people were found to have reduced their risk
whether they were in high, medium or low genetic risk groups.
David Llewellyn, also of Exeter University, said the findings held
an important message that undermined what he described as "a
fatalistic view of dementia".
"Some people believe it's inevitable they'll develop dementia
because of their genetics," he said. "(But) you may be able to
substantially reduce your dementia risk by living a healthy
lifestyle".
(Reporting by Kate Kelland, editing by G Crosse)
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