Extra Weight Linked to Dementia Risk: Karolinska Institute Study

(Reuters Health) - Carrying around extra pounds during middle age was associated with a higher risk of dementia later in life in a new study that followed twins in Sweden for 30 years. The research was not set up to prove that dementia was caused by the added weight, but Dr. Weili Xu, the study's lead author from the Karolinksa Institutet in Stockholm, said that the evidence is pointing in that direction. The findings, published in the journal Neurology, suggest that "control of body fat as early as middle life is important to prevent dementia later in life," she told Reuters Health.

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