Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center have found that avoiding high blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking in midlife extends life without dementia by nearly 13 years, reports infohub.kz.
The team, led by Josef Coresh, established a link between vascular health in midlife and the duration of brain health. As part of the long-term Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study, they analyzed medical data from 12,409 people with an average age of 56 over 26 years.
The results showed that the absence of three key risk factors – hypertension, diabetes, and smoking – between ages 45 and 65 allows one to maintain cognitive function on average nearly 13 years longer. Participants without these conditions lived without dementia for about 30 years from the start of the study, while those with all three factors lived about 17 years.
The authors of the study, published in the journal Neurology, emphasize the critical importance of controlling cardiovascular health from age 45. Additionally, the researchers noted that women generally retain cognitive function longer than men, regardless of the number of risk factors present.