Mitigating Young-Onset Dementia Risk

A wide range of risk factors for young-onset dementia have been found by researchers. The findings call into question the concept that genetics is the sole cause of the disease, paving the way for new prevention techniques.

The large-scale study identified 15 risk variables for late-onset dementia, which are identical to those for Alzheimer’s disease. For the first time, they suggest that by focusing on health and lifestyle variables, it may be possible to lower the risk of young-onset dementia.

Although there are approximately 370,000 new cases of young-onset dementia each year worldwide, little research has been conducted.

The new study by the University of Exeter and Maastricht University monitored over 350,000 UK Biobank individuals under the age of 65 from across the country. The researchers looked at a wide range of risk variables, from genetic predispositions to lifestyle and environmental impacts. The study, titled “Risk factors for young-onset dementia in the UK Biobank: A prospective population-based study,” was published in the journal JAMA Neurology.

Lower formal education, lower socioeconomic status, genetic variation, lifestyle factors such as alcohol use disorder and social isolation, and health issues such as vitamin D deficiency, depression, stroke, hearing impairment, and heart disease all significantly increase the risk of young-onset dementia, according to the study.

Professor David Llewellyn of the University of Exeter emphasized the importance of the findings, saying, “This breakthrough study illustrates the crucial role of international collaboration and big data in advancing our understanding of dementia. There’s still much to learn in our ongoing mission to prevent, identify, and treat dementia in all its forms in a more targeted way.”

“This is the largest and most robust study of its kind ever conducted. Excitingly, for the first time it reveals that we may be able to take action to reduce risk of this debilitating condition, through targeting a range of different factors.”

Dr. Stevie Hendriks, Researcher at Maastricht University, said, “Young-onset dementia has a very serious impact, because the people affected usually still have a job, children, and a busy life. The cause is often assumed to be genetic, but for many people we don’t actually know exactly what the cause is. This is why we also wanted to investigate other risk factors in this study.”

Sebastian Köhler, Professor of Neuroepidemiology at Maastricht University, said, “We already knew from research on people who develop dementia at older age that there are a series of modifiable risk factors. In addition to physical factors, mental health also plays an important role, including avoiding chronic stress, loneliness and depression. The fact that this is also evident in young-onset dementia came as a surprise to me, and it may offer opportunities to reduce risk in this group too.”

Dr. Janice Ranson, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Exeter, said, “Our research breaks new ground in identifying that the risk of young-onset dementia can be reduced. We think this could herald a new era in interventions to reduce new cases of this condition.”

Dr. Leah Mursaleen, Head of Clinical Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said, “We’re witnessing a transformation in understanding of dementia risk and, potentially, how to reduce it on both an individual and societal level. In recent years, there’s been a growing consensus that dementia is linked to 12 specific modifiable risk factors such as smoking, blood pressure and hearing loss . It’s now accepted that up to four in 10 dementia cases worldwide are linked to these factors.”

“This pioneering study shines important and much-needed light on factors that can influence the risk of young-onset dementia. This starts to fill in an important gap in our knowledge. It will be important to build on these findings in broader studies.”

For more information: Risk Factors for Young-Onset Dementia in the UK Biobank, JAMA Neurology (2023). DOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2023.4929