A team of Indian-origin scientists has identified 11 risk factors — age education, history of diabetes, history of current depression, history of stroke, parental dementia, economic disadvantage, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, living alone, and being male—for developing dementia, a condition affecting about 50 million people worldwide and projected to triple by 2050.
The researchers said that the new dementia risk score identifies people at risk — from mid-life onwards — of developing the disease within the next 14 years.
But targeting key 11 risk factors, several of which involve lifestyle, could potentially avert around 40 per cent of cases, according to the long term study published in the journal BMJ Mental Health.
“It’s important to remember that this risk score only tells us about our chances of developing dementia; it doesn’t represent a definitive outcome," said Sana Suri, Associate Professor at the University of Oxford.
"The importance of each risk factor varies and given that some of the factors included in the score can be modified or treated, there are things we can all do to help reduce our risk of dementia," she added.
For the study, the researchers drew on two large groups of 50 to 73-year olds participating in two long term studies.
Further, the APOE gene, which is involved in the production of a protein that helps carry cholesterol and other types of fat in the bloodstream, is a known risk factor for dementia.\
"While older age (60 and above) and APOE confer the greatest risk, modifiable factors, such as diabetes, depression, and high blood pressure also have a key role. For example, the estimated risk for a person with all of these will be approximately three times higher than that of a person of the same age who doesn't have any," Suri said.
The researchers suggest that the accuracy of their risk score could be further improved by adding cognitive tests, a brain scan, and a blood test for indicators of neurodegeneration.
However, Dr Raihaan Patel, the lead author of the study, said more research is needed "before we can use this risk score in clinical practice".