More studies are, however, needed to better understand how to interpret levels of plasma cholesterol in relation to what's going on in the brain.
It has been believed that keeping your cholesterol levels in check as you age is good for your brain as well as your heart, but a new study suggests the connection between cholesterol and dementia later in life isn't quite so clear-cut.
Both cell and animal studies have suggested that high cholesterol contributes to Alzheimer's disease but the relationship between cholesterol and dementia may vary over a lifetime.
For the study, researchers examined data from a study which began in 1968 and consisted of 1,462 Swedish women between the ages of 38 and 60 years. The women were given follow-up exams at four intervals, the last of which occurred in 2001. In addition to receiving various heart tests, chest X-rays and blood tests, the women were also assessed for dementia at each exam.
In 2001, 161 of the original group had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia.
While there was no association between dementia and high cholesterol levels at mid-life when including all participants, the researchers did find that the risk of dementia increased from 8.9 percent for those who maintained or had increased cholesterol over the course of the study, while it increased 17.5 percent for people with the greatest decline in cholesterol. Although women with the highest cholesterol levels showed a six-fold increase in risk for Alzheimer's disease compared to those with the lowest, researchers said that trend became statistically insignificant after adjusting for other variables. The authors also noted that their research was confined to Swedish women and might not be applicable to men and other ethnicities.
The findings highlight how risk factors for dementia can change over the course of a person's life span and suggest the need for different prevention strategies, depending on a person's life stage. Effective primary prevention of dementia may need to address early and midlife risk factors while, in late life, 'prevention' may necessarily focus on delaying progression. More studies are, however, needed to better understand how to interpret levels of plasma cholesterol in relation to what's going on in the brain.
Both cell and animal studies have suggested that high cholesterol contributes to Alzheimer's disease but the relationship between cholesterol and dementia may vary over a lifetime.
For the study, researchers examined data from a study which began in 1968 and consisted of 1,462 Swedish women between the ages of 38 and 60 years. The women were given follow-up exams at four intervals, the last of which occurred in 2001. In addition to receiving various heart tests, chest X-rays and blood tests, the women were also assessed for dementia at each exam.
In 2001, 161 of the original group had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia.
While there was no association between dementia and high cholesterol levels at mid-life when including all participants, the researchers did find that the risk of dementia increased from 8.9 percent for those who maintained or had increased cholesterol over the course of the study, while it increased 17.5 percent for people with the greatest decline in cholesterol. Although women with the highest cholesterol levels showed a six-fold increase in risk for Alzheimer's disease compared to those with the lowest, researchers said that trend became statistically insignificant after adjusting for other variables. The authors also noted that their research was confined to Swedish women and might not be applicable to men and other ethnicities.
The findings highlight how risk factors for dementia can change over the course of a person's life span and suggest the need for different prevention strategies, depending on a person's life stage. Effective primary prevention of dementia may need to address early and midlife risk factors while, in late life, 'prevention' may necessarily focus on delaying progression. More studies are, however, needed to better understand how to interpret levels of plasma cholesterol in relation to what's going on in the brain.
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