Four in 10 dementia cases could be prevented or delayed

Modifying 12 risk factors from childhood to late life could delay or prevent 40% of dementia cases, according to a new report led by UCL researchers. The study is an update to The Lancet Commission on dementia prevention, intervention, and care , and adds head injury and harmful alcohol drinking in mid-life, and air pollution exposure in later life, to the list of preventable causes of dementia. Combined, the three new risk factors are associated with 6% of all dementia cases - with an estimated 3% of cases attributable to head injuries in mid-life, 1% of cases to excessive alcohol consumption (of more than 21 units per week) in mid-life, and 2% to exposure to air pollution in later life. The remaining risk factors are associated with 34% of all dementia cases. The factors associated with the greatest proportion of dementia cases in the population are less education in early life, hearing loss in mid-life, and smoking in later life (7%, 8%, and 5%, respectively). Led by 28 world-leading dementia experts, the report builds on the nine risk factors identified in the 2017 Lancet Commission*, and provides an up-to-date analysis of the best evidence on the prevention of dementia. The new report calls for nations and individuals to be ambitious about preventing dementia and lays out a set of policies and lifestyle changes to help prevent dementia.