Increased longevity also increases risk for age-related dementia.
People who reach their 80s without cardiovascular disease are more likely to suffer from the effects ofdementia than a heart attack or stroke, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In a small group of participants, an association was also found between zero or low levels of artery-clogging calcium deposits and a low risk of dementia and cardiovascular events, suggesting that the cardiovascular risk factors that lead to coronary heart disease could also affect the brain.
Increasingly successful heart disease prevention and treatment methods have led to longer lifespans, which in turn creates a larger population of older people at risk for dementia. In the United States, dementia mainly affects people over the age of 75.
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