Posted on 09/02/2023 8:27:05 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
A new dementia risk score, which draws on 11 mostly modifiable risk factors, identifies people at risk—from midlife onward—of developing the disease within the next 14 years, suggests a large long term study.
The UK Biobank Dementia Risk Score, or UKBDRS for short, outperformed three other widely used risk scores originally developed in Australia (ANU-ADRI), Finland (CAIDE), and the U.K. (DRS), the findings show.
In all, 220,762 (average age just under 60) people from the UK Biobank study and 2,934 (average age 57) from the Whitehall II study were included in the final analysis.
The researchers compiled a list of 28 established factors associated with a heightened or reduced risk of developing dementia, to which they applied a statistical method (LASSO regression) designed to identify and discard the least relevant factors, and so focus the score on the strongest predictors.
This produced 11 predictive factors for any type of dementia—the UK Biobank Dementia Risk Score (UKBDRS).
The 11 factors were: age; education; history of diabetes; history of/ current depression; history of stroke; parental dementia; economic disadvantage (Townsend deprivation index) high blood pressure; high cholesterol; living alone; and male sex.
Within 14 years, 3,813 (nearly 2%) and 93 (just over 3%) participants developed dementia in the UK Biobank and Whitehall II groups, respectively.
UKBDRS-APOE produced the highest predictive score, closely followed by the UKBDRS, and then age alone, followed by DRS, CAIDE, and finally ANU-ADRI.
Referring to the illustrative example provided, she explains, "While older age (60 and above) and APOE confer the greatest risk, modifiable factors, such as diabetes, depression, and high blood pressure also have a key role. For example, the estimated risk for a person with all of these will be approximately three times higher than that of a person of the same age who doesn't have any."
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Yes. The brain needs cholesterol
Speaking of statins, does taking red yeast rice have the same risk factors as taking a statin? My GP recommended I take the red yeast rice supplement since I did not want to take the statin. If it is chemically the same it would seem to have the same inherent negative affects?
A lot of these are modifiable, even starting today.
= = =
They want us to start with modifying the ‘male sex’ factor.
Oh well...
That’s an apple vs. orange comparison. A closer comparison is men vs. women. At the group level, with many exceptions, men’s brains are about 10% larger than women’s, although they only score about 5% better on cognitive tests. Half of men’s larger brains are dedicated to managing more muscles and body size. Women get Alzheimer’s about twice as often as men.
Yes. In fact, I have heard that about 25% of the cholesterol in our bodies is in our brain. That, and the fact that cholesterol is the mother of all hormones, would make one think that it is rather important. But to listen to the media established medical industry, you would think that cholesterol is bad for you. You do not want damaged cholesterol, of course, so steps should be taking to void that.
My GP has been after me for years to take a statin. My total cholesterol has been between 250 and 300 for as long as I can remember. I am 72 years old, and I am blessed with excellent health. I do not want to reduce the amount of cholesterol in my body because it is the mother of all of our hormones. In addition about 25% of it resides in our brains. This is rather important, so I would like my cholesterol levels to be as high as possible. Damaged cholesterol is a problem, so I try to eat very little sugar and not too many carbohydrates.
There are at least a couple of books out there at discuss the myths and hoaxes surrounding cholesterol. They are very eye-opening.
My GP has been after me for years to take a statin. My total cholesterol has been between 250 and 300 for as long as I can remember. I am 72 years old, and I am blessed with excellent health. I do not want to reduce the amount of cholesterol in my body because it is the mother of all of our hormones. In addition about 25% of it resides in our brains. This is rather important, so I would like my cholesterol levels to be as high as possible. Damaged cholesterol is a problem, so I try to eat very little sugar and not too many carbohydrates.
There are at least a couple of books out there at discuss the myths and hoaxes surrounding cholesterol. They are very eye-opening.
Thanks for the reply. That is what I am thinking. My cholesterol is not really that high but my CAC score was in the 700 range. That score is concerning but recent stress test showed no blockages.
Excellent question.
“Male sex” means biologically male here.
Gender is meaningless now, because it is subjective and means whatever the person wants it to mean. It can be changed at any time and for any reason.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.