Study finds global variation in dementia risk factors

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Researchers analysed more than two lakh people across 14 countries using long-running aging surveys collected between 2009 and 2023 to compare 12 modifiable dementia risk factors identified by the Lancet Commission. They found broadly similar clusters related to cardiovascular disease, risky behaviours, and social or sensory factors, but prevalence differed by setting: low education affected 85.6% of older adults in China versus 12% in the US, and high BMI affected 44.9% of Americans versus 13.3% in India. More than 50% of individuals had at least two risk factors, a finding that could guide redesign of prevention programmes to target clustered risks.

More than half of people had at least two modifiable dementia risks.