01.04.15
Middle-aged diabetics have a greater chance of developing memory and cognitive problems during the following 20 years than their counterparts with healthy blood sugar levels, according to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers, who found that diabetes appears to age the mind roughly five years faster beyond the normal effects of aging.
For example, on average, a 60-year-old with diabetes experiences cognitive decline on par with a healthy 65-year-old aging normally. Decline in memory, word recall and executive function is strongly associated with progression to dementia, a loss of mental capacity severe enough to interfere with a person’s daily functioning.
A report on the research was published in Annals of Internal Medicine. The study is believed to be the longest of its kind following a cross-section of adults as they age.
“The lesson is that to have a healthy brain when you’re 70, you need to eat right and exercise when you’re 50,” explained study leader Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, MPH, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “There is a substantial cognitive decline associated with diabetes, pre-diabetes and poor glucose control in people with diabetes. And we know how to prevent or delay the diabetes associated with this decline.”
For the study, Dr. Selvin and the team used data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (ARIC), which in 1987 began following a group of 15,792 middle-aged adults in communities in Maryland, North Carolina, Minnesota and Mississippi. Participants were seen at four visits approximately three years apart beginning between 1987 and 1989, and were seen a fifth time between 2011 and 2013. Cognitive function was evaluated at visits two (1990-1992), four (1996-1998) and five.
The researchers compared the amount of cognitive decline associated with aging with the amount of decline found in the ARIC participants. They determined there was 19% more decline than expected in those participants with poorly controlled diabetes, as well as smaller declines for those with controlled diabetes and pre-diabetes. The outcomes were the same whether the participants were white or black.
Dr. Selvin said the results underscore the importance of using a combination of weight control, exercise and a healthy diet to prevent diabetes. Even losing just 5-10% of body weight, she said, can keep someone from developing diabetes. “If we can do a better job at preventing diabetes and controlling diabetes, we can prevent the progression to dementia for many people. Even delaying dementia by a few years could have a huge impact on the population, from quality of life to healthcare costs.”
Nationwide, dementia costs in 2010 were estimated to be upward of $159 billion a year; costs are expected to increase by nearly 80% by 2040.
For example, on average, a 60-year-old with diabetes experiences cognitive decline on par with a healthy 65-year-old aging normally. Decline in memory, word recall and executive function is strongly associated with progression to dementia, a loss of mental capacity severe enough to interfere with a person’s daily functioning.
A report on the research was published in Annals of Internal Medicine. The study is believed to be the longest of its kind following a cross-section of adults as they age.
“The lesson is that to have a healthy brain when you’re 70, you need to eat right and exercise when you’re 50,” explained study leader Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, MPH, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “There is a substantial cognitive decline associated with diabetes, pre-diabetes and poor glucose control in people with diabetes. And we know how to prevent or delay the diabetes associated with this decline.”
For the study, Dr. Selvin and the team used data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (ARIC), which in 1987 began following a group of 15,792 middle-aged adults in communities in Maryland, North Carolina, Minnesota and Mississippi. Participants were seen at four visits approximately three years apart beginning between 1987 and 1989, and were seen a fifth time between 2011 and 2013. Cognitive function was evaluated at visits two (1990-1992), four (1996-1998) and five.
The researchers compared the amount of cognitive decline associated with aging with the amount of decline found in the ARIC participants. They determined there was 19% more decline than expected in those participants with poorly controlled diabetes, as well as smaller declines for those with controlled diabetes and pre-diabetes. The outcomes were the same whether the participants were white or black.
Dr. Selvin said the results underscore the importance of using a combination of weight control, exercise and a healthy diet to prevent diabetes. Even losing just 5-10% of body weight, she said, can keep someone from developing diabetes. “If we can do a better job at preventing diabetes and controlling diabetes, we can prevent the progression to dementia for many people. Even delaying dementia by a few years could have a huge impact on the population, from quality of life to healthcare costs.”
Nationwide, dementia costs in 2010 were estimated to be upward of $159 billion a year; costs are expected to increase by nearly 80% by 2040.
