Study over 30 years
Children who are overweight are at greater risk of developing dementia later in life
According to the study, physical fitness has an influence on how well the brain ages. The foundation for this is probably laid in childhood.
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Dementia is a widespread disease that affects more and more people. But there are factors that have an impact on how fit our brain is in old age. Childhood weight is probably one of them, according to a long-term study.
First the car key is misplaced, then your own name. When the great forgetting sets in, when dementia nibbles at the ability to remember, the human being gradually disappears too. “Dementia robs millions of people of memory, independence and dignity, but it also robs the rest of us of the people we know and love,” said World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus when presenting a study last year. It tells of a rapid increase in the number of cases. What factors influence cognitive decline? How can he be stopped? The results of a long-term study have now been published in the “Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport”. They suggest that prevention work should begin in childhood.
The long-term study is based on fitness tests that were started in Australia in 1985. 1244 children between the ages of 7 and 15 took part in the study. Three decades later, these children were re-examined as adults. This time the cognitive abilities were tested. The research team found that people who were thinner and fitter as children were also mentally fitter as adults. And that it may make them less prone to developing dementia later.
Remedies for dementia: Fit body, fit head
How important is a child’s fitness for later health? To find out, the kids were sent to the sports field. There it was measured how fast they can run a mile (about 1620 meters) and how much time they need for the 50-meter sprint. How far they can jump and how many push-ups they can do in 30 seconds. In addition, the tape measure was applied to the abdomen, checked as to the relationship to the waist and hips.
After that, nothing happened for 30 years. The children grew into adults and lived their lives without being bothered by the scientists – until 2017. The study entered phase two that year. The health of the children from back then, who are now between 39 and 50 years old, was examined again. However, the focus was no longer on muscle strength, but on their ability to think. Reaction time, memory performance and attention span were tested. In fact, people who were relatively thinner and fitter as children performed better on these tests. A possible explanation: Physical activity in childhood ensures an early strengthening of the blood vessels that supply the brain.
Making the brain strong against dementia
This is an interesting observation for research. Because there has long been evidence that a decline in cognitive abilities in middle age increases the likelihood of dementia in old age. For example, a study conducted by the French research institute Inserm almost 10 years ago came to the conclusion that very fat but otherwise healthy people are particularly susceptible to cognitive disorders and thus dementia. 6401 participants took part in the study.
The results of the Australian study now suggest that the impending cognitive decline could be counteracted at an early stage. So it could make sense to start with protective strategies – “improve low fitness and reduce obesity in childhood” as early as childhood. “Sciencedaily” quotes Michele Callisaya of Monash University in Melbourne and lead author of the study. She considers this necessary “so that the brain can develop sufficient reserves against the development of diseases such as dementia”.
In an information sheet from the German Alzheimer Society from 2020, the number of people suffering from dementia in Germany is estimated at 1.6 million. Most of them have Alzheimer’s disease. According to this, more than 300,000 new patients are added every year. According to calculations, between 2.4 and 2.8 million people could be suffering from dementia in 2050. Katrin Seeher, a WHO expert, last year named factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, depression and social isolation, smoking, alcohol and obesity as factors that promote dementia. With a healthier lifestyle, good schooling and intact social contacts, everyone can minimize their risk of dementia.
Source: Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, Neurology, Sciencedaily, German Alzheimer Society, daily News