A recent study conducted by the National Institute on Aging and published in Molecular Psychiatry on Tuesday found a connection between people's weight at the middle of their life and the chances that they will develop Alzheimer's disease later in life, as well as when they will develop it, according to CBS. Specifically, the research found that each additional body mass index (BMI) point into the realm of obesity brings on the disease 6.7 months earlier.
The research used data obtained from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging to compare records of almost 1,400 participants in order to look for a connection between BMI and Alzheimer's. However, the study did not determine whether losing weight decreases the risk of dementia, according to Telegraph.
"The best ways to keep healthy and reduce your risk of developing dementia include eating a balanced diet, not smoking and taking regular physical exercise," said Clare Walton, manager of the Alzheimer's Society. "We know dementia can begin to develop years or maybe decades before symptoms begin and so keeping healthy through midlife and into later life is important for reducing dementia risk."
Other studies have found that obesity can lead to chronic inflammation in the body, including the brain, which could potentially worsen symptoms of Alzheimer's, according to Health.
Alzheimer's disease currently affects approximately 5 million people in the U.S. alone and this number is expected to be more than double by 2050 unless a medical breakthrough occurs. The disease begins to do its damage more than 10 years before symptoms appear and thus far, efforts to find a cure have been in vein.
