Obesity in Middle Age May = Cognitive Decline

[IIOY]

Apparently the WSJ celebrates Fat Tuesday as well.

People who are obese in middle age and who have high blood pressure and other so-called metabolic risk factors have a speedier cognitive decline as they get older than people of normal weight, according to a large study published Monday in the journal Neurology.

The study, involving 6,401 participants and spanning 10 years, adds to research indicating that obesity increases the risk of dementia later in life.

The study also runs counter to the relatively new idea that obese individuals can escape poor health if they are otherwise metabolically healthy, meaning they don't exhibit risk factors associated with diabetes and heart disease, including elevated triglycerides and low HDL cholesterol.

"In the last 10 years or so, people started suggesting you could be fit and fat—you could be obese and metabolically healthy and have no health risk," said Archana Singh-Manoux, lead author of the study and research director at Inserm, the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research.

Study participants who were obese yet metabolically normal still went on to experience a significant cognitive decline. "All of these [obese] individuals, whether they were metabolically healthy or not healthy, had a poor cognitive profile," Dr. Singh-Manoux said.

At the beginning of the study, the mean age of the participants was 50. Fifty-three percent were of normal weight, 38% were overweight and 9% were obese. Also, 31% of all participants had metabolic risk factors.

The participants underwent a battery of cognitive tests at three different points in time over the 10 years. The tests assessed reasoning, short-term memory and "verbal fluency," which is an indicator of executive functioning.

The study, partly funded by the National Institutes of Health in the U.S., controlled for education and socioeconomic status. It makes use of data from the larger Whitehall II cohort, a group of 10,308 British civil servants whom scientists began following in 1985.

About 60% of the 582 obese people in the study, or 350 individuals, had two or more metabolic risk factors and so were considered "metabolically abnormal." For these participants, the cognitive decline overall was 22.5% faster than for normal-weight individuals considered "metabolically normal."

And the obese participants with risk factors started out cognitively older, with test scores at the start of the study of a normal-weight, metabolically normal person who was seven years older, Dr. Singh-Manoux said.

Scientists aren't sure exactly how obesity and cognitive decline are linked. Heart disease and inflammation are likely involved.

High blood-sugar levels and elevated blood pressure may contribute to changes in blood vessels and the brain. Fat tissue may lead to hormonal imbalances that negatively affect the brain, says Deborah R. Gustafson, visiting professor at the State University of New York-Downstate Medical Center.

Lifestyle factors associated with obesity may play a role. These individuals may not exercise as much. They may have a higher proportion of smoking," says Ronald Petersen, director of the Alzheimer's disease Research Center at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Aerobic exercise seems to lower the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

Normal-weight participants with metabolic risk factors, representing about 18% of the participants, had poorer cognitive function than normal-weight participants without risk factors. None of the groups was unscathed by the passing of time. Over the 10 years, every group had cognitive test score declines.

[copzgirl1171]

Why didn't you post this before I ate that donut?

DO YOU NOT EVEN CARE!!!!

[IIOY]

Aug 21, 2012 7:31:56 GMT -5 @copzgirl1171 said:

Why didn't you post this before I ate that donut?

DO YOU NOT EVEN CARE!!!!

Looky there, your reasoning abilities are failing you already!

[rugbywife]

I think that the effects of obesity are pretty far-reaching. Yes, there are people who are obese and don't suffer any physiological effects, but those people are few and far between, for the most part, even being just overweight is enough to cause your body to be affected.

I do wonder how much lifestyle factors play a role, as it says in the article, exercise is likely not happening much in these situations and I do think the hormonal/psychological response to exercise affect the brain in some way.

[copzgirl1171]

In all honesty though, this is one of the reasons why I run/walk and try and eat well. I think we learned in junior high that junk in means junk out and well, I spew enough junk as it is I really don't want my kids trying to decipher more in my golden years

[Deleted]

It makes some sense since there have plenty of studies on how exercise improves brain function (not that I'm not saying you can't be active and overweight)

[EloiseWeenie]

This is really interesting. My FIL is obese, and has memory issues already. His mother had dementia, so I feel like I'm always looking for signs as it is. His memory is total crap. I've been married to my H for 5.5 years, and every time we see the ILs (about 5-6 times a year), FIL tells the exact same stories every time. He watches so much tv/movies, that his stories become blurred with what he sees on tv (when we leave I have to ask my H what part of the stories are true). It's really sad.

MIL is on top of it, and calls his doctors and tells them what is going on. She doesn't think it's dementia, but the doctors are changing around some of his meds to see if it will help. Now I want to go walk, or eat carrots or something. I don't ever want his health issues.