Hypertension in middle age may pave the way for the development of dementia a few decades later, warns the American Heart Association (AHA).
According to a scientific statement, hypertension is the worst thing for the brain because it disrupts the structure and function of its blood vessels, leads to reduced perspiration in the areas of its white matter that play a key role in mental functions and may promotes the development of lesions leading to Alzheimer’s disease.
In other words, hypertension can favor the two most common forms of dementia: Alzheimer’s disease, which accounts for 55-60% of dementia cases, and vascular dementia, which accounts for another 20%.
Studies have shown that when a person has hypertension in their 30s or 40s, they are up to 62% more likely to develop vascular dementia later in life. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2015 there were 47.4 million people living with dementia worldwide.
In 2030 it is estimated that it will be 75.6 million and in 2050 it will have exceeded 135.4 million. “People with high blood pressure are more likely to develop dementia,” said lead researcher Dr. Costantino Iadecola, a professor of neurology & neuroscience at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.
“But whether regulating blood pressure reduces the risk of dementia is not scientifically proven. “The only thing that exists is small studies which have shown that controlling stress improves mental skills.” The scientific statement of AHA was published in the review “Hypertension”.
SOURCE: http://ygeia.tanea.gr
