Daijiworld Media Network - Munich
Munich, Aug 31: Taking statins earlier in life may lower the risk of developing dementia, with a 15-year study suggesting that people who begin the cholesterol-lowering medicines early could have a 15 per cent lower risk of the disease.
The findings come as the number of people living with dementia worldwide is projected to nearly triple to 153 million by 2050. Experts believe that almost half of dementia cases could potentially be prevented or delayed by addressing modifiable risk factors throughout life.
The new research, presented in Munich at the annual congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), examined more than 132,000 people in Denmark between 2006 and 2021. The findings were also published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe.
Researchers found that people who started taking statins during the study period were 10 per cent less likely to develop dementia compared with those who did not start treatment. Those who began taking the medicines earlier had a 15 per cent lower relative risk. The association was similar among men and women.
Among the 132,585 people followed by Dr Tummas Ternhamar of Copenhagen University Hospital and his colleagues, 2.7 per cent developed dementia.
Compared with people who did not start statin treatment, early initiation was associated with a 15 per cent lower relative risk of dementia over 10 years, while late initiation was associated with a 10 per cent lower relative risk.
Prof Isabel Goncalves, a member of the ESC communication committee who was not involved in the research, said the findings were potentially important because statins are widely available and inexpensive.
Statins are among the most commonly prescribed medicines worldwide. They reduce levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which can contribute to plaque buildup in arteries and increase the risk of heart attacks, strokes and cardiovascular disease.
Researchers believe the drugs may also have an indirect protective effect on the brain. High LDL cholesterol can contribute to the hardening and narrowing of blood vessels supplying the brain, potentially disrupting blood flow and increasing the risk of brain damage and dementia.
"Detecting and treating high levels of LDL-C from midlife is one such highlighted risk factor," Ternhamar said, referring to recommendations from the Lancet Commission on dementia prevention.
A previous Lancet dementia commission report identified 14 potentially modifiable risk factors and estimated that addressing them from childhood through later life could prevent or delay around 45 per cent of dementia cases.
Ternhamar said the new findings supported the idea that dementia risk should be tackled through several measures at the same time, including controlling cholesterol, maintaining physical activity and eating a healthy diet.
"Our study supports the idea that dementia risk is best addressed by targeting several factors at once, and that cholesterol may belong on that list," he said.
He added that while the Lancet Commission already recommends detecting and treating high LDL cholesterol from midlife, the new findings suggested that the timing of intervention could also matter.
"What our findings also add is that timing matters within that – acting early looks better than acting late," he said.
The researchers are continuing to investigate precisely why statins might be associated with lower dementia risk. Ternhamar said lowering LDL cholesterol helps protect against atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease, which could subsequently protect the brain's blood vessels from narrowing, ischaemic stroke, reduced blood flow and tissue damage.
However, experts cautioned that the findings do not prove that statins directly prevent dementia. The study was observational, meaning it identified an association rather than establishing a cause-and-effect relationship.
Dr Honorine Lebraud of Alzheimer's Research UK said the research added to growing evidence connecting cardiovascular and brain health and reinforced the idea that measures beneficial to the heart could also benefit the brain.
She said further research was needed to establish a direct link between statin use and reduced dementia risk.
Prof Bryan Williams, chief scientific and medical officer of the British Heart Foundation, also stressed that the observational nature of the study meant it could not prove that statins themselves were responsible for reducing dementia risk.
However, he noted that previous clinical trials have provided evidence suggesting statins can reduce dementia risk, making the new findings biologically plausible.