A recent study published in Neurology® found that middle-aged individuals with poorly controlled risk factors such as blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol, combined with unhealthy habits like lack of exercise, poor diet, and inadequate sleep, have an increased risk of developing stroke, dementia, or depression later in life. The study, which followed over 300,000 participants with an average age of 56 for five years, looked at the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 factors for cardiovascular and brain health. These factors include being active, eating well, maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, controlling blood pressure and cholesterol levels, getting enough sleep, and managing blood sugar levels.
Lead author Santiago Clocchiatti-Tuozzo, MD, MHS, emphasized the importance of brain health in overall well-being and highlighted the impact of healthy lifestyle choices in middle age on brain health later in life. The study categorized participants into optimal, intermediate, and poor health factor scores and found that individuals with poor scores were more than twice as likely to develop one of the three neurological conditions compared to those with optimal scores. Additionally, those with intermediate scores had a 37% higher risk of developing one of the neurological conditions.
One of the limitations of the study was the reliance on participants’ scores measured only at the beginning of the study, which did not account for potential lifestyle changes over the five-year follow-up period. However, the study’s findings suggest that focusing on improving these cardiovascular and brain health factors could have significant benefits for brain health and potentially reduce the risk of developing neurological conditions in the future. The researchers also noted the need for further research to better understand the link between lifestyle habits and brain health, as well as how social factors like race and ethnicity may influence this connection.
The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health and involved a large sample size of over 300,000 participants, providing robust data to support the findings. Researchers also replicated the study in a separate group of participants with similar results, further strengthening the association between poor lifestyle factors and increased risk of neurological conditions. The results underscore the importance of adopting healthy lifestyle habits, particularly in middle age, to promote brain health and reduce the risk of developing stroke, dementia, or depression in later life.
In conclusion, the study highlights the significance of maintaining optimal cardiovascular and brain health factors through healthy lifestyle choices in middle age to potentially lower the risk of neurological conditions such as stroke, dementia, and depression later in life. The findings suggest that improving factors like blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, exercise, diet, and sleep habits may have meaningful impacts on brain health and overall well-being. Future research is needed to further explore the relationship between lifestyle factors and brain health, as well as the influence of social factors on this connection.