Healthy Lifestyle Could Save Adults from Cognitive Impairment

Adults are highly vulnerable to cognitive impairments. However, leading a healthy lifestyle helps them to beat cognitive disabilities, says study.

A new study by Xurui Jin of Duke Kunshan University in Jiangsu, China, and colleagues published in the journal PLOS Medicine reveals that a healthier lifestyle promotes cognitive function among the elderly.

Apolipoprotein E (APOE) is a genetic factor that contributes to cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease (AD) in humans. Other than this, lifestyle factors such as smoking, drinking, diet, and physical activity also have an impact on cognition.

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‘People who lead healthy lifestyle are 55% less likely to experience cognitive impairments than people who follow an unhealthy lifestyle’

Previous evidence linked lower risks of dementia only among apolipoprotein E (APOE) with healthier lifestyle patterns among apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 noncarriers. The current study aimed to investigate the impact of APOE genotype in the associations between lifestyle and cognition among the elderly.

To identify the potential impact of APOE genotype on the above relationship the team statistically analyzed the data from 6,160 adults aged 80 or older who had participated in a larger, ongoing study known as the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey.

Factors such as sociodemographics were also considered as they could possibly impact cognition. The healthy lifestyle patterns were defined by scores that included factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, dietary pattern, physical activity, and body weight.

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The results showed that,

• Participants who carry APOE ε4 genotype were associated with 17% higher odds of developing cognitive impairment than those who had any other type of APOE genotype.

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• Participants who followed a healthy lifestyle were 55% less likely to have cognitive disabilities than those who followed an unhealthy one.

Although the researchers explained that further trials and cohort studies are necessary to strengthen their findings, this study emphasizes the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle to prevent cognitive disabilities in adults regardless of the genetic factors.

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Cigarette smoking, unhealthy diets, overuse of alcohol, and physical inactivity are some of the most common lifestyle habits that cause chronic diseases such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Source-Medindia