Health

Study Identifies 3 Factors to Potentially Delay Dementia for 13 Years

Is dementia prevention a matter of personal lifestyle choices or does it demand systemic investment and reform?

AUG 6·Updated AUG 8

Study Identifies 3 Factors to Potentially Delay Dementia for 13 Years

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Above: The International Day of Older Persons is observed on Oct. 1, 2025, with a gathering of elderly residents at dawn in a local park in Tokyo, Japan. Image credit: David Mareuil/Contributor/Anadolu/Getty Images

The Facts

A study published in Neurology Open Access on Wednesday found that avoiding high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and smoking between ages 45 and 65 was linked to nearly 13 additional dementia-free years, on average, compared with those who had all three risk factors.
CNN
Daily Mail
Neurology
The research, led by NYU Langone Health, analyzed data from 12,409 people with an average age of 56 drawn from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study, which began in 1986 and tracked participants for an average of 26 years.
CNN
PR Newswire
During the follow-up period, 3,008 participants developed dementia and 5,238 died without developing it. Those with no risk factors averaged 30.1 dementia-free years, compared with just over 17 years for those with all three.
Daily Mirror
ScienceAlert
The study also found that women lived longer without dementia than men regardless of risk factors. Women with all three risk factors averaged 18.1 dementia-free years from tracking's start, versus 16.6 years for men.
The National News
ScienceAlert
White participants with all three risk factors lived an average of 19.6 years without developing dementia, compared with 16 years for Black participants. Dr. Josef Coresh said certain populations, "such as Black adults, may especially benefit from targeted prevention efforts."
New Scientist
Daily Mail
Experts note the study shows association rather than causation, as risk factors were measured only once. Globally, the number of people living with dementia is projected to nearly triple to 153 million by 2050, with experts estimating nearly half of cases could be prevented or delayed.
Irishtimes
Daily Mail

Sources Split

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The Spin

Narrative A

Skipping cigarettes, keeping blood pressure in check and avoiding diabetes in your 50s can buy nearly 13 extra years without dementia — that's not a small deal. Midlife is exactly when brain changes linked to dementia begin, making those years the highest-leverage window for protecting long-term cognitive health. Waiting until symptoms show up is waiting too long.

WHO on X

ScienceAlert

Neurology

Narrative B

Dementia remains a crushing reality with no NHS drugs available to slow or cure it, and lifestyle advice alone won't fix a system that chronically underfunds dementia research compared to other major diseases. Black adults develop dementia years sooner than white adults even with the same risk factors, exposing deep health disparities that individual choices can't fully overcome. Targeted prevention investment — not just personal responsibility messaging — is what's actually needed.