PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Lower IQ in teen years increases risk of early-onset dementia

Lower IQ in teen years increases risk of early-onset dementia
2014-03-10
(Press-News.org) Men who at the age of 18 years have poorer cardiovascular fitness and/or a lower IQ more often suffer from dementia before the age of 60. This is shown in a recent study encompassing more than one million Swedish men.

In several extensive studies, researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy of Gothenburg University have previously analyzed Swedish men's conscription results and were able to show a correlation between cardiovascular fitness as a teenager and health problems in later life.

Increased risk for early-onset dementia In their latest study, based on data from 1.1 million young Swedish men, the Gothenburg researcher team shows that those with poorer cardiovascular fitness and/or lower IQ in their teenage years more often suffer from early-onset dementia.

"Previous studies have shown the correlation between cardiovascular fitness and the risk of dementia in old age. Now, for the first time, we can show that the increased risk also applies to early-onset dementia and its precursors," says Sahlgrenska Academy researcher Jenny Nyberg, who headed the study.

Controlled for other risk factors Expressed in figures, the study shows that men who when conscripted had poorer cardiovascular fitness were 2.5 times more likely to develop early-onset dementia later in life. A lower IQ entailed a 4 times greater risk, and a combination of both poor cardiovascular fitness and low IQ entailed a 7 times greater risk of early-onset dementia.

The increased risk remained even when controlled for other risk factors, such as heredity, medical history, and social-economic circumstances.

Fitness strengthens the brain "We already knew that physical and cognitive exercise reduces the risk of neurological disease. Physical exercise increases nerve cell complexity and function and even generation of new nerve cells in the adult brain, which strengthens our mental and physiological functions. In other words, good cardiovascular fitness makes the brain more resistant to damage and disease," says Prof. Georg Kuhn, senior author of the study.

Overlooked group People who develop early-onset dementia are often of working age and can have children still living at home, which means the consequences for both the sufferers and their families are even more serious. Despite this, patients with early-onset dementia are a relatively overlooked group.

"This makes it important to initiate more research into how physical and mental exercise can affect the prevalence of different types of dementia. Perhaps exercise can be used as both a prophylactic and a treatment for those in the risk zone for early-onset dementia," says Nyberg.

The article Cardiovascular and cognitive fitness at age 18 and risk of early-onset dementia was published online in the scientific journal Brain on 7 March.

INFORMATION: Link to article: http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2014/03/06/brain.awu041.abstract

FACTS ABOUT DEMENTIA AND THE QUOTED STUDY Dementia is not a disease but a group of different diseases characterized by the gradual worsening of cognitive abilities. Dementia is seen across all ethnic groups and increasingly so with advancing age. Among 65󈞱-year-olds, about 2 percent are afflicted, with this figure doubling for every five years of age.

The quoted study encompassed all Swedish men conscripted for mandatory military service between the years 1968 and 2005, a total of 1.1 million individuals. In the study, the researchers have compared the results from the conscripts' cardiovascular fitness and IQ tests with information from national disease registries. During the study period, a total of 660 men were diagnosed with early-onset dementia.

Contact: Jenny Nyberg
Ph.D. and Researcher at Sahlgrenska Academy
Gothenburg University
jenny.nyberg@neuro.gu.se

Georg Kuhn
Professor and Researcher at Sahlgrenska Academy
Gothenburg University
georg.kuhn@neuro.gu.se

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Lower IQ in teen years increases risk of early-onset dementia

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Some characteristics increase the likelihood of getting married and living together

2014-03-10
CORAL GABLES, FL (March 10, 2014) -- When it comes to romantic relationships, attributes such as health, kindness, and social status have been shown to be important qualities in choosing a partner. It may be surprising to learn, however, that certain personal traits predispose a person towards either getting married or forming a cohabitating relationship. According to a study recently published in the journal Social Science Research, scoring high on attractiveness, personality, and grooming is associated with a greater probability of entering into a marital relationship ...

A shocking diet

2014-03-10
There have been plenty of fad diets that captured the public's imagination over the years, but Harvard scientists have identified what may be the strangest of them all – sunlight and electricity. Led by Peter Girguis, the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Natural Sciences, and Arpita Bose, a post-doctoral fellow in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, a team of researchers showed that the commonly found bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris can use natural conductivity to pull electrons from minerals located deep in soil and sediment while remaining at the surface, ...

Ben-Gurion U. researchers identify severe genetic disease prevalent in Moroccan Jews

2014-03-10
BEER-SHEVA, Israel, March 10, 2014 - Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers have unraveled the genetic basis of a hereditary disease that causes severe brain atrophy, mental retardation and epilepsy in Jews of Moroccan ancestry, according to a study published this week online in the Journal of Medical Genetics. The disease, which the researchers have called PCCA2 (Progressive Cerebello-Cerebral Atrophy Type 2), is caused by two mutations in the VPS53 gene. It results in defective circulation of vacuoles (endosomes) within patents' cells and leads to detrimental ...

Penn researchers model a key breaking point involved in traumatic brain injury

Penn researchers model a key breaking point involved in traumatic brain injury
2014-03-10
Even the mildest form of a traumatic brain injury, better known as a concussion, can deal permanent, irreparable damage. Now, an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Pennsylvania is using mathematical modeling to better understand the mechanisms at play in this kind of injury, with an eye toward protecting the brain from its long-term consequences. Their recent findings, published in the Biophysical Journal, shed new light on the mechanical properties of a critical brain protein and its role in the elasticity of axons, the long, tendril-like part ...

Predation on invertebrates by woodland salamanders increases carbon capture

Predation on invertebrates by woodland salamanders increases carbon capture
2014-03-10
ARCATA, Calif.—Woodland salamanders perform a vital ecological service in American forests by helping to mitigate the impacts of global warming. Global warming occurs when greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are released into the atmosphere. Woodland salamanders facilitate the capture of this carbon before it is released by feeding on invertebrates (beetles, earthworms, snails, ants, etc.) that would otherwise release carbon through consumption of fallen leaves and other forest debris. Woodland salamanders are the most common vertebrate species in American forests; consequently, ...

Parkinson's disease: Quickly identifying patients at risk of dementia

2014-03-10
This news release is available in French. It may now be possible to identify the first-stage Parkinson's patients who will go on to develop dementia, according to a study conducted at the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal by Dr. Oury Monchi, PhD, and his postdoctoral student, Dr. Alexandru Hanganu, MD, PhD, both of whom are affiliated with Université de Montréal. These findings were published in the journal Brain. Although Parkinson's disease is generally associated with motor problems such as trembling or rigidity, people with this disease actually ...

NASA satellites eye troublesome Tropical Cyclone Lusi

NASA satellites eye troublesome Tropical Cyclone Lusi
2014-03-10
Tropical Cyclone Lusi has spawned warnings and watches in the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Zealand as it moves through the South Pacific Ocean. NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites provided visible and infrared views of the storm that revealed it has become better organized. NASA's Terra satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Cyclone Lusi over Vanuatu on March 9 at 23:30 UTC. The image showed towering thunderstorms surrounded the center and northwestern quadrants of the storm. The next day at 02:17 UTC, NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Lusi and captured infrared ...

US cocaine use cut by half, while marijuana consumption jumps, study finds

2014-03-10
The use of cocaine dropped sharply across the United States from 2006 to 2010, while the amount of marijuana consumed increased significantly during the same period, according to a new report. Studying illegal drug use nationally from 2000 to 2010, researchers found the amount of marijuana consumed by Americans increased by more than 30 percent from 2006 to 2010, while cocaine consumption fell by about half. Meanwhile, heroin use was fairly stable throughout the decade. Methamphetamine consumption dramatically increased during the first half of the decade and then declined, ...

Scientists build thinnest-possible LEDs to be stronger, more energy efficient

Scientists build thinnest-possible LEDs to be stronger, more energy efficient
2014-03-10
Most modern electronics, from flat-screen TVs and smartphones to wearable technologies and computer monitors, use tiny light-emitting diodes, or LEDs. These LEDs are based off of semiconductors that emit light with the movement of electrons. As devices get smaller and faster, there is more demand for such semiconductors that are tinier, stronger and more energy efficient. University of Washington scientists have built the thinnest-known LED that can be used as a source of light energy in electronics. The LED is based off of two-dimensional, flexible semiconductors, making ...

A signal to spread: Wistar scientists identify potent driver of metastasis

2014-03-10
An international team of researchers led by scientists at The Wistar Institute have discovered and defined LIMD2, a protein that can drive metastasis, the process where tumors spread throughout the body. Their study, published in the March issue of the journal Cancer Research, defines the structure of LIMD2 and correlates the protein in metastatic bladder, melanoma, breast, and thyroid tumors. Wistar scientists have also developed and patented a monoclonal antibody that may one day be used as a prognostic test to see if tumors have LIMD2, and plans are underway to create ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Children’s social media activity highlights emotional stress of living with long-term health issues

New tool maps hidden roles and risks in ecosystems

New breakthrough method to protect quantum spins from noise

Chemicals from turmeric and rhubarb could help fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria lurking in wastewater

Instant cancer diagnosis with light and AI!

New electroenzymatic strategy enables non-natural oxidation reactions

Tunable laser light

Scientists uncover magnetic-field control of ultrafast spin dynamics in 2D ferromagnets

New AI-powered model accurately predicts lung motion with minimal radiation

AI language models show promise in predicting liver cancer treatment outcomes

Tracking insect and bug health in a heartbeat from a digital camera

'Talking fish' not heard by conservation policies, SFU study warns

Thirty years of research shows increased resistance in fungi

Junk food ‘avoids advertising regulation’ with top level UK sports sponsorship

Banking on AI while committed to net zero is ‘magical thinking’, claims report on energy costs of big tech

Ancient river systems reveal Mars was wetter than we thought

Online toolkit to help parents of autistic children improve dental health

The psychological and neurological parallels between sports fandom and religious devotion

Agricultural liming in the US is a large CO2 sink, say researchers

Seaside more likely to make us nostalgic than green places, study finds

Psilocybin delays aging, extends lifespan, Emory study suggests

Buck Institute awarded DARPA contract to pioneer next-gen AI modeling platform

Orange is the new aphrodisiac—for guppies

Murals boost Cincinnati’s vitality, community development

Ad blockers may be showing users more problematic ads, NYU Tandon study finds

Verbal response time reveals hidden sleepiness in older adults

University of Maryland School of Medicine launches groundbreaking study on THC/CBD therapy for dementia-related agitation at end of life

Targeting stem-property and vasculogenic mimicry for sensitizing paclitaxel therapy of triple-negative breast cancer by biomimetic codelivery

SRSF7 promotes pulmonary fibrosis through regulating PKM alternative splicing in lung fibroblasts

Psychological stress-activated NR3C1/NUPR1 axis promotes ovarian tumor metastasis

[Press-News.org] Lower IQ in teen years increases risk of early-onset dementia