Researchers Have Discovered 2 New Dementia Risk Factors. Here's What They Are.

"What affects your heart will affect your brain, and we see that time and time again,” one expert noted.

Strides have been made in the world of dementia research compared with even just a few years ago. There’s now a blood test that can diagnose Alzheimer’s accurately 90% of the time, and more is understood about the factors (many of which are lifestyle habits) that can put you at higher risk for the condition.

In a new dementia report published in The Lancet journal by researchers who are part of The Lancet Commission, two new modifiable risk factors have been identified: high cholesterol after 40 and untreated vision loss.

In 2020, these same researchers determined 12 modifiable risk factors that are known to put folks at higher risk of developing dementia. These are:

Physical inactivitySmokingExcessive alcohol consumptionAir pollutionHead injuryInfrequent social contactLess educationObesityHypertensionDiabetesDepressionHearing impairment

According to the report, these 12 factors, along with the two new ones, account for 49% of dementia cases across the world. Researchers determined these two new risk factors by looking at recent meta-analyses and studies on the topics; they looked at 14 papers on vision loss and 27 on high cholesterol.