Men with heart risk face a faster decline in brain health as compared to women with cardiovascular disease.
A study published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry revealed that men with heart risk are more vulnerable to cognitive decline than women.
A long-term observational study that used UK Biobank data showed that the brains of men with these risks start declining a decade earlier than the women.
The lead author of the study, Professor Paul Edison, said, “It was important to learn that cardiovascular disease on dementia had such a profound influence in males a decade earlier than in females, and this was not previously known. This has significant implications for the way in which we treat cardiovascular disease in men and women to prevent dementia in the future.”
Researchers already knew that cardiovascular disease risk factors like type 2 diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure impact cognitive health, but they wanted to find out the best time to begin the treatment to prevent or slow down the risk of dementia.
After analyzing data from nearly 34,500 UK participants with a risk of heart disease, the researchers found that obesity and high levels of belly fat were the biggest reasons behind declining brain volume among both genders.
However, the damaging effects among men begin between the ages of 55 and 74, while in women, the strongest effects were seen between 65 and 74, which means.
Researchers noted that the study highlights that men are more at risk than women and the importance of “aggressively targeting cardiovascular risk factors before the age of 55 years” to prevent neurodegeneration and Alzheimer's disease.
