Nearly half of dementia cases may be linked to risks you can change
Date:
August 6, 2026
Source:
Lund University
Summary:
A long-term brain study found that common risks such as smoking, high blood pressure, heart disease, and high blood lipids were strongly linked to damage associated with vascular dementia. The findings suggest that healthier lifestyle choices could help delay dementia by reducing several harmful brain changes at once.
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Nearly half of dementia cases may be connected to risk factors that people can potentially change, including smoking and high blood pressure. New research from Lund University has identified how specific risk factors are associated with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia, the two most common causes of dementia
A person’s dementia risk is shaped partly by factors that cannot be altered, including age, gender and genetics. Other influences may be modifiable, such as smoking, cardiovascular disease, high blood lipids, physical activity, alcohol consumption, hearing loss and high blood pressure
Dementia is not a single disease. It is a collection of symptoms that can result from several different disorders, which means the risks may vary depending on the underlying cause. Researchers at Lund University examined how individual risk factors are connected to brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia
“Much of the research available on the risk factors that we ourselves can influence does not take into account the different causes of dementia. This means that we have had limited knowledge of how individual risk factors affect the underlying disease mechanisms in the brain,” explains Sebastian Palmqvist, senior lecturer in neurology at Lund University and senior physician at the Memory Clinic at SkÃ¥ne University Hospital
Researchers Tracked Brain Changes for Four Years
The study involved almost 500 participants who had an average age of 65 and showed no signs of cognitive impairment. Researchers followed them for four years, measuring changes in the brain’s white matter, the nerve fibers that are often damaged in vascular dementia
The team also monitored levels of amyloid β and tau, two proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Their goal was to determine how both modifiable and nonmodifiable risk factors were related to changes in the brain over time
Vascular Risks Were Linked to White Matter Damage
Most of the modifiable factors examined, including smoking, cardiovascular disease, high blood lipids and high blood pressure, were associated with damage to blood vessels in the brain. They were also linked to a more rapid buildup of changes in white matter
“We saw that most modifiable risk factors — smoking, cardiovascular disease, high blood lipids and high blood pressure, among others — were linked to damage to the brain’s blood vessels and a faster accumulation of so-called white matter changes. This damage impairs the function of the blood vessels and leads to vascular brain damage – and can ultimately lead to vascular dementia,” says Isabelle Glans, doctoral student at Lund University and resident in neurology at SkÃ¥ne University Hospital.
The researchers also identified possible connections between certain risk factors and the proteins involved in Alzheimer’s disease
“Diabetes was associated with increased accumulation of amyloid β, while people with lower BMI had faster accumulation of tau. However, these findings need to be investigated further and validated in future studies,” continues Isabelle Glans
Healthy Habits May Reduce Multiple Forms of Damage
Adopting healthier habits and addressing modifiable risks may help delay the appearance of Alzheimer’s symptoms. This may be especially important because many people with dementia have more than one type of disease process occurring in the brain, including both vascular damage and Alzheimer’s related changes
Palmqvist said that improving vascular and metabolic health may therefore remain valuable even for people at risk of Alzheimer’s disease
“Focusing on vascular and metabolic risk factors can still help reduce the combined effects of several brain changes that occur simultaneously,” he concludes
Materials provided by Lund University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length
Journal Reference:
- Isabelle Glans, Niklas Mattsson-Carlgren, Olof Strandberg, Erik Stomrud, Rik Ossenkoppele, Danielle van Westen, Nicola Spotorno, Oskar Hansson, Sebastian Palmqvist. Associations of modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors with longitudinal white matter hyperintensities, amyloid-β and tau – a prospective cohort study. The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease, 2026; 13 (2): 100448 DOI: 10.1016/j.tjpad.2025.100448
Cite This Page:
Lund University. “Nearly half of dementia cases may be linked to risks you can change.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 6 August 2026. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260803080923.htm>.
Lund University. (2026, August 6). Nearly half of dementia cases may be linked to risks you can change. ScienceDaily. Retrieved August 6, 2026 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260803080923.htm
Lund University. “Nearly half of dementia cases may be linked to risks you can change.” ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260803080923.htm (accessed August 6, 2026).
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