Study Reveals Link Between Obesity and Dementia

If your waistline is expanding, your brain could be shrinking -
especially if you are a middle-aged woman. Results of a study
conducted by researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin and
Göteborg University in Sweden reveal that women who are overweight
throughout middle to later life are more likely to lose brain
tissue, which is linked to dementia.

"This study indicates that a high BMI is a risk factor for
dementia in women," says Deborah Gustafson, PhD, of the Department
of Family and Community Medicine. A growing body of scientific
evidence indicates obesity can be detrimental to overall health,
but this is the first study to show a higher BMI is related to
brain atrophy, particularly of the temporal lobe. The temporal
lobe, which is often affected in Alzheimer's disease, plays a role
in memory, verbal expression and language comprehension.

"This is the first study to look at a measure of overweight and
obesity over a lengthy period of time," Dr. Gustafson said. The
study began in 1968 and four follow-up examinations were done on
the women between 1968 and 1992.

What does this study mean to the average woman? "Women should know
that vascular risk factors, such as overweight and obesity, are
important not only for cardiovascular health during mid- and later
life, but for the latest periods of life as well, and potentially
for dementing disorders," Dr. Gustafson said. "We are too
comfortable with being overweight in the US, eating too much food,
and not getting enough exercise. We should all be able to improve
our vascular risk profile to some extent, through better eating
habits - better quality and reduced quantity - and more exercise,"
she said.

If the present epidemic of obesity continues, it might lead to a
boom of dementia in the future. "It is clear that leading a
healthy lifestyle could help to reduce the risks of dementia," Dr.
Gustafson said.

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