Individuals who are overweight or obese at the age of 50 may be at greater risk of earlier onset of Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research published in Molecular Psychiatry.

Share on Pinterest Study participants who were overweight or obese in midlife developed Alzheimer’s an average of 6.7 months earlier than those of a healthy weight.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting around 5.3 million Americans, of whom 5.1 million are aged 65 and older.

Common risk factors for Alzheimer’s include age, a family history of the disease and the presence of certain genes, such as apolipoprotein E-e4 (APOE-e4).

Previous studies have also suggested a link between midlife obesity and increased risk for Alzheimer’s, but study co-author Dr. Madhav Thambisetty, of the Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience at the National Institute on Aging (NIA), and colleagues say it was unclear how midlife obesity impacts the age of onset. They set out to assess this association with their latest research.

The study involved the analysis of 1,394 cognitively normal adults who were a part of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) – one of the longest-running longitudinal studies of aging in the US.

The team assessed participants’ body mass index (BMI) at midlife – defined as the age of 50 – and their development of Alzheimer’s via neurological assessments every 2 years for an average of 14 years. During follow-up, 142 participants developed Alzheimer’s.