Reducing frailty in older adults could be an effective strategy to prevent dementia, according to a largescale new study.
Published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, the study found that frailty was a strong risk factor for dementia, even among people who are at a high genetic risk for dementia, and that it might be modified through a healthy lifestyle.
The international team from Dalhousie University and Nova Scotia Health in Canada and the University of Exeter in the UK, worked with data from more than 196,000 adults aged over 60 in the UK Biobank. They calculated participants’ genetic risk and used a previously-developed score for frailty, which reflects the accumulation of age-related symptoms, signs, disabilities and diseases. They analysed this alongside a score on healthy lifestyle behaviours, and who went on to develop dementia.
“We’re seeing…
