Tuesday 02 Feb 2016 - 18:55 Makkah mean time-23-4-1437
Those who developed mild cognitive impairment had a lost more weight per decade - an average of 4.4lbs (2kg) - compared to just 2.6lbs (1.2kg) among those who retained their cognitive power, researchers found.
Minnesota, US (IINA) - Losing weight, as you get older might be an early warning sign of dementia, a US study suggests, Mail Online health news reported.
Experts warn that people who shed pounds between their 40s and their 70s may be at greater risk of memory and thinking problems in later life.
They suspect that dwindling appetite and weight-loss in middle age - a problem known as ‘anorexia of ageing’ may be a precursor to dementia for some people.
In a study of nearly 1,900 people, US scientists from the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota found that a weight loss of 11 pounds (5kg) per decade corresponded to a 24 percent increased risk of mild cognitive impairment, a condition that often leads to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
The researchers said that weight loss in middle-aged people could help doctors to identify people at higher risk of being struck down with dementia.
Although they could not prove the cause, they suspect that depression and apathy, which are known to be early symptoms of dementia, may cause people to lose weight many years before they start displaying memory problems.
The team, whose work is published in the medical journal JAMA Neurology, studied 1,895 aged 70 or older, who had no signs of dementia.
The researchers reassessed the participants four years later, by which time 524 of them had developed mild cognitive impairment.
Looking back at the participants’ old medical records, they determined their height and weight going back up to 40 years, when they were aged between 40 and 65.
Those who developed mild cognitive impairment had a lost more weight per decade - an average of 4.4lbs (2kg) - compared to just 2.6lbs (1.2kg) among those who retained their cognitive power.
The authors said it was impossible to determine whether weight loss was intentional or unintentional. But they wrote: ‘Our findings suggest that an increasing rate of weight loss from midlife to late life is a marker for mild cognitive impairment and may help identify persons at increased risk.’
They added: ‘With regard to causal mechanisms, weight loss prior to cognitive impairment may be related to what has been termed “anorexia of aging”.
‘While the direct cause of this anorexia is not clear, we speculate that the dysfunctional production of certain hormones on dietary intakes and energy metabolism may lead to reduced dietary intakes that affect mild cognitive impairment risk.’
Dr Laura Phipps of Alzheimer’s Research UK said: ‘This study highlights a possible link between weight changes in the decades after middle age and the risk of developing memory and thinking problems that can precede dementia.
‘While the findings are interesting, it is difficult to tease apart cause and effect from this kind of study and it is not clear what could be driving this link.
‘Weight loss may be the result of early damage in the brain from diseases like Alzheimer’s and could indicate an underlying problem, but there are many reasons why a person’s weight can change.
‘The study doesn’t tell us that losing weight causes dementia, or that putting on weight will prevent the condition.
‘Maintaining a healthy weight at any point of life can have health benefits, including helping to control dementia risk factors such as diabetes and high blood pressure.’
Dr James Pickett, head of research at Alzheimer’s Society said: ‘We need to be careful when interpreting these results because the minor differences in weight loss shown here, less than a kilo over a decade, are of much smaller consideration than the effects of the other health conditions that these participants with memory problems had, like diabetes, hypertension or coronary heart disease.
‘It is not unusual for people to lose weight as they get older, but anyone concerned about large, unintentional weight loss should speak to their doctor.’
SM/IINA
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