A new study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, indicates that if we do not take care of our cardiovascular health when we are in the prime of life, we have more risk of developing cognitive impairment as you age.
“What may seem good for the heart is also good for the brain,” explains the study’s lead author, Professor Evan Thacker, of Brigham University. “It reminds us that every part of our body is connected and that keeping it healthy allows us to take care of others as well.”
2% more risk
To reach this conclusion, Professor Thacket and his team used data on the cardiovascular health of 17,761 people aged 45 and over, with normal cognitive function and no history of stroke. Four years later, the latter then linked the data on cardiovascular health and the scores achieved during tests on brain functions.
To determine cardiovascular health, seven key areas were studied: smoking; Healthy food ; physical activity ; body mass index; blood pressure; total cholesterol and fasting blood sugar. The tests focused on learning lists of 10 words that had to be found a few minutes later or naming as many animals as possible in 60 seconds.
The researchers showed that 4.6% of people with the worst heart health suffered from cognitive impairment four years later, compared to only 2.6% of people with a perfectly healthy heart.
“This is an encouraging study because it shows that cognitive disorders are not inevitable. All you need to do is take care of your heart, either by quitting smoking, or by reducing your BMI or even by fighting against cholesterol, to keep more chances of aging with all his mental faculties” insists the doctor.
