Does obesity increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease?

A study found that women with Alzheimer's disease with a variant of the APOE ε4 gene lose weight much faster after the age of 70 than other women of the same age. They believe that this finding and a series of previous studies provide rich evidence that weight testing and management are of great significance for the treatment and management of Alzheimer's patients.

The study was published online on September 16 in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Some studies have shown that being overweight or obese after middle age may increase the risk of dementia symptoms, but being overweight later in life may have a protective effect on this symptom. These studies have found that among people over the age of 70, people with dementia symptoms lose weight much faster than normal people of the same age. However, there is little evidence on the impact of mutations in the APOE gene, a key gene that causes Alzheimer's disease, on the rate of weight loss.

To study this issue, they analyzed 1462 Swedish women who participated in a long-term women's group health survey (more than 30 years). The initial age distribution is between 38 and 60 years old.

"We analyzed the relationship between their BMI and dementia symptoms, and considered the relationship between the APOE gene and the first two," said the study's lead author, Dr. Deborah Gustafson, professor of neurology at the SUNY Downstate Medical Research Center in the United States and honorary researcher at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.

By 2000, 559 living women had agreed to undergo blood genetic testing. Among the above samples, they found that 97 had symptoms of dementia during a 37-year follow-up survey. In addition, the researchers found that the trajectory of changes in participants 'BMI over 37 years was highly correlated with the type of APOEε4.

Although women's BMI increases are roughly equivalent between middle age and 70, those with an APOEε4 variant have a much higher BMI decline after age 70 than those without the variant.

Their study separated dementia incidence from this complex relationship. "We found that as long as people carrying the APOEε4 variant, the rate of decline in BMI after the age of 70 increased significantly, regardless of whether they actually had dementia." The authors said the study revealed a relationship between the APOEε4 genotype and BMI.

Dr. Gustafson also believes that BMI is a very easy body index to detect compared to APOEε4 testing, making it easier for the elderly to detect and prevent their own dementia.

To learn more about how to lose weight, please pay attention to our Weixin Official Accounts