A recent study by researchers from Maastricht University and the University of Exeter has identified 15 factors associated with the development of early-onset dementia, challenging the belief that genetics are the sole cause.
These factors include lower formal education, lower socioeconomic status, the presence of 2 apolipoprotein ε4 allele (APOE ε4, a major genetic risk factor for Alzheimer disease), complete abstinence from alcohol, alcohol use disorder, social isolation, vitamin D deficiency, high levels of C-reactive protein, reduced handgrip strength, hearing impairment, orthostatic hypotension, stroke, diabetes, heart disease, and depression.
The study analyzed data from over 350,000 participants and highlighted the importance of modifiable risk factors and mental health in addition to physical factors. (Trending: Fox News Star Accused Of Major Scandal)
The findings also indicated a surprising relationship between alcohol use and reduced risk of young-onset dementia.
The impact of young-onset dementia is significant, and early diagnosis and support are crucial.
“This study shows that there are a wide range of risk factors for young-onset dementia,” lead study author Stevie Hendriks said.
“This study changes our understanding of young-onset dementia, challenging the notion that genetics are the sole cause of the condition and highlighting that a range of risk factors may be important,” Hendriks added.
While the study provides valuable insights, it is observational and further research is needed to validate the findings.
“We already knew from research on people who develop dementia at older ages that there are a series of modifiable risk factors.”
“In addition to physical factors, mental health also plays an important role, including avoiding chronic stress, loneliness and depression,” she added.
“The fact that this is also evident in young-onset dementia came as a surprise to us, and it may offer opportunities to reduce risk in this group.”
“Our analyses showed that both persons with moderate alcohol use and heavy alcohol use had less risk of young-onset dementia compared to persons who did not drink any alcohol,” Hendriks said.
“We are unsure why this is — one of our theories is that this may be due to the ‘healthy drinker effect,’ meaning that persons who do not drink may … have an illness or take medication,” she went on.
“This means that the persons in the ‘no drinking’ group may be unhealthier than persons in the other groups, leading to the results we found.”
“Young-onset dementia has a very serious impact, because the people affected usually still have a job, children and a busy life.”
“The cause is often assumed to be genetic, but for many people, we don’t actually know exactly what the cause is. This is why we also wanted to investigate other risk factors in this study.”
“In the future, we hope to be able to provide individual advice on lifestyle and risk factors to decrease the individual risk of young-onset dementia — for instance, for persons who have a genetic predisposition,” Hendriks said.
“Our risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other dementia is influenced by a variety of factors, including our age, genetics and a host of modifiable factors,” said Claire Sexton, senior director of scientific programs and outreach for the Alzheimer’s Association.
“Not surprisingly, a number of similar risk factors [for] late-onset Alzheimer’s emerged in the authors’ analyses, suggesting possible roles for genetics, socioeconomic status, activity levels, cardiovascular health, education and several additional factors,” Sexton said.
“However, the insights into risk factors provided by this study remain important — once confirmed — in order to inform future risk reduction initiatives.”
“For many of these risk factors, the relationship may be bidirectional — that is, the factor may contribute to and/or be a consequence of disease onset.”
“We need more studies investigating risk factors of young-onset dementia to validate our findings,” Hendriks said.
“Although this is the largest study on risk factors for young-onset dementia to date, bigger studies are needed to increase the reliability of the results,” Henriks added.
Most Popular:
Epstein’s Brother Finally Breaks His Silence
Chilling Arrest Footage of Trump Co-Defendant Provides Glimpse Into Jack Smith Probe
U.S. State Passes Personal Pronoun Ban
