Bigger bellies linked to dementia

A bulging midriff in middle age increases the risk of later Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, a study has shown.

Researchers found that people with large stomachs in their 40s were significantly more likely to be suffering mental decline by their 70s.

The reason for the association is not clear. Abdominal obesity could be just one part of a complex set of effects caused by unhealthy living that also impact on the brain.

Scientists studied 6,583 people aged 40 to 45 in California and measured their levels of abdominal fat. An average of 36 years later, 16% of the volunteers had been diagnosed with dementia.

Those who had the highest amount of waistline fat in their 40s were almost three times more likely to have developed dementia than those with the lowest amount of fat.

Study leader Dr Rachel Whitmer, from the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, California, said: "Considering that 50% of adults in this country have abdominal obesity, this is a disturbing finding.

"It is well known that being overweight in midlife and beyond increases risk factors for disease. However, where one carries the weight - especially in midlife - appears to be an important predictor for dementia risk.

"Autopsies have shown that changes in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease may start in young to middle adulthood, and another study showed that high abdominal fat in elderly adults was tied to greater brain atrophy.

"These findings imply that the dangerous effects of abdominal obesity on the brain may start long before the signs of dementia appear."

The findings, published in the journal Neurology, showed that being overweight and having a large belly increased the risk of dementia 2.3 times. People who were both obese and big-bellied were 3.6 times more likely to suffer dementia than those of normal weight and belly size.

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