Being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes before the age of 50 may have serious cognitive consequences.
Researchers found being diagnosed at a younger age increases the risk of dementia, especially in patients with obesity.
Their study included more than 12-hundred adults with type 2 diabetes and no dementia who were followed for up to 14 years.
Participants diagnosed before the age of 50 were 1.9 times as likely to develop dementia compared to those diagnosed at 70 or later. Those diagnosed in their 50s or 60s also faced increased odds.
But the highest risk of dementia was found among obese adults who developed type 2 diabetes before 50, according to the data
The senior author says these findings “suggests that specifically targeting obesity—whether through diet and exercise or perhaps medication—may play a role in staving off dementia in younger adults with diabetes.”
Source: PLOS ONE
Author Affiliations: NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing
