People who smoke, are overweight, and have other health problems in middle age may be at increased risk of developing signs of brain shrinkage and diminished planning and organization skills as they age, new research indicates.
Other health problems linked to brain shrinkage and mental decline include high blood pressure and diabetes.
“Our findings provide evidence that identifying these risk factors early in people of middle age could be useful in screening people for at-risk dementia and encouraging people to make changes to their lifestyle before it’s too late,” Charles DeCarli, MD, of the University of California-Davis in Sacramento, says in a news release.
Biosingularity 