Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease may not be an inevitable part of aging, according to a recent Dutch study that identified 100-year-olds with high cognitive performance despite risk factors for decline.
This six-year study of centenarians – people over the age of 100 – found that despite high levels of a brain marker associated with cognitive decline called beta amyloid, these centenarians were still sharp and performed well on cognitive tests. . The researchers concluded that these elderly subjects may have resistance mechanisms to protect them from memory loss.
In fact, they said that the risk of dementia cannot necessarily increase after you turn 100.
“A person between the ages of 70 and 95 is at the same risk of dementia as a person between the ages of 100 and 102,” said Henne Holstege, PhD, of the College of Medicine at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. in the study.
These results provide a glimmer of hope for some that, although dementia and Alzheimer’s are more likely to occur with age, it will not be everyone’s fate.
“Age is the risk factor no. 1 for Alzheimer’s, but these findings show that centenarians may thrive despite old age, ”said Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medicine and New York Presbyterian Hospital. conducted the study.
Although these findings shed light on aging and cognitive function, it remains a complex phenomenon that requires further exploration, according to experts.
“Dementia and Alzheimer’s tend to be multifactorial conditions, which means a mixture of genetics, age, environment, living behaviors and medical conditions that coexist together and can lead a person to or away from cognitive decline,” Isaacson said.
Researchers are still unsure why certain people are protected from cognitive decline, while others are spared. The researchers in the study proposed some of these protective factors associated with cognitive performance could be education, frequent cognitive activity and even IQ. But there may be more at stake.
“There may be protective immune and cardiovascular risk factors that keep the brain resilient and cognitively functional even in old age,” said Dr. Gayatri Devi, a neurologist and psychiatrist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.
The role of brain markers in the study of memory, including a sticky plaque called beta amyloid that is normally found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s, is now being debated among experts. The different presence of these markers in this study further contributes to this complicated process.
“It’s important to understand that the presence of amyloid in the brain doesn’t necessarily mean that a person will develop dementia,” Isaacson said. “There are other lifestyle factors and behaviors that can make us resilient and resistant to cognitive decline.”
Importantly, there are some caveats to this study. For example, brain markers were analyzed in only 44 of the participants, so the results may not apply to everyone, and more research is needed to learn about the complexity of aging.
Other studies have investigated the prevention of cognitive decline. According to the 2020 Lancet Commission report, 40% of dementia cases can be prevented based on modifiable risk factors. Some of these previous studies have been successful in improving cognitive function and reducing risk.
A study by Isaacson’s team at the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic found that it was possible to improve cognitive function and reduce risk, especially in those who followed lifestyle change suggestions, such as exercise, nutrition, risk vascular and drugs.
Even though more is being discovered and debated, experts still recommend maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including a balanced diet, exercise and visits to the doctor, in order to maintain knowledge during aging.
“It’s essential for people at risk to see their doctors regularly and consider cognitive screening tests,” Isaacson said.
Alexis E. Carrington, MD, is a dermatology researcher at the University of California, Davis and a contributor to the ABC News Medical Unit.