People belonging to the blood group AB are more likely to suffer memory loss in later life than people with other blood types, a new study finds.
The study was conducted by researchers from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).
AB is the most uncommon blood type in the United States, with only 3 percent of the county's population falling into this blood group. Hence, finding blood for this group, especially during emergencies can be quite a daunting task. If that wasn't reason enough to worry, researchers have associated another health problem with people from this blood group. They found that such individuals were 82 percent more likely to suffer memory loss in later life than people belonging to other blood groups. Such memory problems also increase the risk of dementia.
For the study, researchers followed more than 30,000 people for an average of 3.4 years. During the study period, 495 participants developed thinking and memory problems or cognitive impairment. Their data was compared to that of 587 people with no cognitive problems.
Researchers found that AB blood type made up 6 percent of the group which developed cognitive impairment, which is higher than the 4 percent found in the population.
"Our study looks at blood type and risk of cognitive impairment, but several studies have shown that factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes increase the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia," said study author Mary Cushman, MD, MSc, of the University of Vermont College of Medicine in Burlington, in a press statement. "Blood type is also related to other vascular conditions like stroke, so the findings highlight the connections between vascular issues and brain health. More research is needed to confirm these results."
A protein known as factor VIII helps in blood clot. Previous studies have found higher level of this protein in the blood is associated with higher risk of cognitive impairment and dementia. Researchers also found that the study participants who had higher levels of factor VIII were 24 percent more likely to develop thinking and memory problems than people with lower levels of the protein. People with AB blood type tend to have higher levels of this protein.
Previous studies have shown that people with type O blood have a lower risk of heart disease and stroke.
The study was published in the online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology
