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WORLD / Health
Obesity not affect seniors' memory
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-09-20 15:10
WEDNESDAY - Being overweight or obese doesn't increase the odds that
seniors will experience memory trouble, a new study finds.
"While past studies have found obesity in middle age increases a person's
risk for dementia or Alzheimer's disease, our finding shows obesity in
old age has no effect on a person's memory. These findings are consistent
with previous studies showing that weight loss or low body mass index in
old age may be a precursor of cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease,"
study author Dr. Maureen T. Sturman, a researcher at the Rush Institute
for Healthy Aging, said in a prepared statement.
The six-year study included more than 3,800 people over the age of 65. Of
those, nearly 25 percent were obese (body mass index over 30), and 37
percent were overweight (body mass index between 25 and 29.9).
Participants underwent cognitive tests at regular intervals over the
course of the study.
Overweight or obese people did not experience significantly different
changes in memory or cognitive function compared to those with normal
weight. In fact, the researchers found that underweight people had more
cognitive decline.
The study is published in the September 19 online issue of the journal
Neurology.
"We do not know yet why being overweight or obese does not increase the
risk of cognitive decline in old age; however, being underweight may be a
correlate of the initial stages of Alzheimer's disease," Sturman said.
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