We are publishing a preview of an article in the new Corriere Salute. You can read the full text on the issue at newsstands for free on Thursday 29 April or in Pdf on the Digital Edition of Corriere della Sera.
Until recently there were nine known and modifiable risk factors on which to act to reduce the risk of getting Alzheimer’s. Now, thanks to the re-evaluation of the data by experts from The Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention, they have become twelve: good news, because it means having more leeway to keep cognitive impairment at bay. The three new parameters to keep an eye on are head trauma in the middle age period, exposure to air pollution in the elderly, excess alcohol.
The 12 risk factors
3 percent of Alzheimer’s cases can be directly attributed to head injuries from the age of forty-five, fifty years onwards, 2 per cent to the smog breathed after the age of 65, 1 per cent to an alcohol consumption that exceeds 21 alcoholic units per week (i.e. over three glasses of wine, three cans of beer or three glasses of spirits per day , ed) – explains Gill Livingston of University College London, coordinator of the report -. By acting on all 12 risk factors 40 percent of dementia cases could be avoided and the impact could be even more evident in developing countries and on the most disadvantaged social classes, where there is a greater spread of elements of danger, such as low education or overweight and obesity.
You can continue reading the article on the Health Courier on newsstands for free on Thursday 29 April or in Pdf on the Digital Edition of Corriere della Sera.
April 28, 2021 (change April 28, 2021 | 18:24)
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