- There were more than 55 million people around the world living with dementia in 2020.
- Previous research shows there are a number of risk factors that can increase a person’s risk for dementia, such as high cholesterol.
- A new study discovered that people with genetic variants that naturally cause them to have lower cholesterol also have a lower risk of dementia.
- Researchers found that for those without these genetic variants, use of cholesterol-lowering drugs might achieve the same result.
According to Alzheimer’s Disease International, there were more than 55 million people around the world living with dementia in 2020, and this number is expected to jump to 78 million by 2030.
While it is still unclear what exactly causes dementia, previous research shows there are a number of factors that can increase a person’s risk of developing different types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.
Some risk factors, such as age and genetics, are not changeable, while other risk factors are modifiable, such as smoking, living a sedentary lifestyle, following a diet high in ultra-processed foods, chronic sleep deprivation, and cardiovascular issues like high blood pressure and
Now, a new study published in
Researchers discovered that people with genetic variants that naturally cause them to have lower cholesterol also have a lower risk of dementia.
And for those without the genetic variants, use of cholesterol-lowering drugs like statins and ezetimibe might result in the same result.
For this study, researchers analyzed health data from more than 1 million people from the UK Biobank, the Copenhagen General Population Study, the Copenhagen City Heart Study, the FinnGen study, and the Global Lipids Genetics Consortium.
Scientists focused on six genetic variants associated with lower cholesterol:
“These gene variants lie within genes encoding the key protein targets of the most commonly used cholesterol-lowering drugs,” Liv Tybjærg Nordestgaard, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom and lead author of this study, explained to Medical News Today.
“HMGCR is the gene that encodes the protein
“For ANGPTL4, LPL, and CETP no drugs have yet been approved but they have been or are being developed,” she added added.
Researchers used a scientific genetic analysis technique called Mendelian randomization to examine how either genetic variants or cholesterol-lowering drugs would influence a person’s dementia risk.
At the study’s conclusion, scientists found that reducing the amount of cholesterol in the blood by a very tiny amount — 1 millimole per liter — can reduce dementia risk by up to 80% for certain drug targets.
“The most important [thing] about this finding is probably that since genes are with us from birth, this tells us something about how there probably is a potential for preventing a large proportion of dementia cases if prevention is started early in life,” Nordestgaard said.
“A big problem with dementia as a disease is that we have very limited treatment options, and the few treatment options that are available do not cure the disease but simply halt the progression. Therefore, the largest potential for reducing the number of people who get dementia is in the prevention of the disease,” she pointed out.
MNT had the opportunity to speak with Peter Gliebus, MD, chief of neurology and director of cognitive and behavioral neurology at Marcus Neuroscience Institute, a part of Baptist Health South Florida, about this study.
Gliebus, who was not involved in the research, commented that the study provides compelling evidence that lowering non-HDL cholesterol through specific drug targets may reduce the risk of all-cause dementia.
“This is promising because it suggests that managing cholesterol levels earlier in life could have long-term benefits for brain health and potentially prevent dementia,” Gliebus explained. “It reinforces the importance of addressing cardiovascular risk factors not only for heart health but also for cognitive health.”
“Dementia is a devastating condition affecting millions globally, with significant personal, societal, and economic impacts,” he continued.
“Despite years of research, effective treatments and prevention strategies remain limited. Identifying modifiable risk factors, such as cholesterol levels, offers hope for reducing the prevalence of dementia. Exploring new prevention methods can help delay or prevent the onset of dementia, improving quality of life and reducing healthcare burdens,” said Gliebus.
MNT also spoke with Yu-Ming Ni, MD, a board-certified cardiologist and lipidologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, about this research.
“I think that the relationship between cholesterol and dementia is likely not direct — it’s likely something that is through multiple relationships,” Ni, who was not involved in the study, told us.
“But we do know that patients with higher cholesterol tend to develop more cholesterol plaque buildup. And we know that cholesterol plaques in the brain can contribute to poor blood flow — with less blood flow to the brain, you’re going to have potentially greater problems with your memory,” he added.
“For a long time, we’ve seen that high cholesterol is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, including stroke, which can affect your cognition. But it isn’t as clear whether lowering cholesterol consistently reduces your risk for dementia, or if it’s simply that lower levels of cholesterol are associated with less dementia. I think it’s more something where, as we study, it’s probably not just cholesterol that’s contributing to your cognition — it’s probably more things than that.”
– Yu-Ming Ni, MD
“So as we try to understand those risk factors, it can help to determine what therapies might be most effective to prevent dementia as people get older,” Ni added. “What would be helpful in the future is being able to really distinguish the different causes for dementia and for the different types of dementia. I think not everyone’s memory issues are the same, and the better we understand this, the better we can devise treatments for it.”
