Three midlife health risks may speed up dementia
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Avoiding or controlling type 2 diabetes, smoking, and high blood pressure may delay dementia by about 13 years, according to a new study published in the journal Neurology Open Access. Adults who had these three risk factors at an average age of 56 were more than twice as likely to develop dementia and over five times as likely to die prematurely from another cause. The findings highlight how managing cardiovascular and metabolic health in midlife may protect both brain health and longevity.
Source
Hu, J., Coresh, J., Smith, J. R., Sharrett, A. R., Gottesman, R. F., Lutsey, P. L., Mosley, T. H., Selvin, E., Fang, M., & Weiss, J. (2026). Midlife vascular risk burden and dementia-free survival years: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive Study. Neurology Open Access, 2(3), e000152. doi:10.1212/WN9.0000000000000152.
Additional Reading
https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/05/health/dementia-smoking-diabetes-blood-pressure-wellness
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/aug/05/midlife-health-factors-delay-dementia-study