Obesity in Middle Age Increases Dementia Risk
Obesity is characterized by the accumulation of an excessive amount of fatty or adipose tissue. Obesity results from unbalanced energy budgets. An overweight person consumes food energy in excess of expenditure and stores the surplus in body fat. The presence of this excess fat impairs the functioning of many important organs and body systems and can lead to multiple health problems
Obesity is a serious condition as it increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes, joint pains, dementia, high blood pressure and some types of cancers such as colon, breast and uterine cancers. Obese people are also more prone to diseases and problems such as stroke, gall bladder disease, breathing problems (sleep apnoea syndrome), low back pain, swelling of the feet and ankles, imbalances and accidents. Obese people have a low self-esteem and they avoid company, which makes them insular and insecure.
The study revealed that obese individuals had a 74% more risk of dementia as compared to those who had normal weight. Overweight people had 35% greater risk of developing dementia. Body Mass Index equal to or more than 30 was considered obese, while BMI in the range 25.0-29.9 was considered overweight. Individuals with a greater distribution of subscapular or triceps skin fold thickness had more risk of dementia.
Being obese in middle age increases the likelihood of dementia later in life, according to a new study that followed people from their forties through to old age. The finding highlights a coming crisis: the western obesity epidemic will seriously compound the effects of an ageing population, which on its own is expected to increase the incidence of dementia by 400% in the next 20 years
A number of studies have reported that obese individuals are at an increased risk for later cognitive decline. Within the context of cardiovascular disease, a centralized distribution of adiposity represents a more potent risk factor than does total body obesity. To examine whether distribution of adiposity also affects the risk of dementia, Whitmer et al. conducted a longitudinal analysis of 6,583 members of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program of Northern California.
Modifiable Risk Factor
People who were obese in mid-life were 74 percent more likely to have dementia, while overweight people were 35 percent more likely to have dementia, compared to those with normal weight, said lead investigator Rachel A. Whitmer, PhD, a research scientist with the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, California. The researchers determined that middle age, high body mass index and high skin-fold thickness in the upper back and upper arm are strongly associated with risk of dementia.
