Diabetes describes a group of metabolic conditions that typically result from problems with insulin production, action, or both. This can cause a widespread impact on the body, such as damaging blood vessels due to high blood sugar levels, or causing inflammation . Thus, it is not uncommon for those living with diabetes to experience comorbid conditions, or multimorbidity . This refers to an individual living with two or more chronic, long-term health conditions. Although the link between diabetes and dementia is not well understood, research has noted that diabetes can increase dementia risk. Previous research has mostly focused on type 2 diabetes and its association with dementia. However, growing evidence is also highlighting a link between type 1 diabetes and dementia. Now, a new large cohort study published in Neurology , suggests that people with type 2 diabetes have an elevated risk of dementia, but the risk may be even greater among those with type 1 diabetes. This highlights the need to better understand the mechanisms connecting diabetes and cognitive decline.
Diabetes describes a group of metabolic conditions that typically result from problems with insulin production, action, or both.
This can cause a widespread impact on the body, such as damaging blood vessels due to high blood sugar levels, or causing inflammation .
Thus, it is not uncommon for those living with diabetes to experience comorbid conditions, or multimorbidity . This refers to an individual living with two or more chronic, long-term health conditions.
Although the link between diabetes and dementia is not well understood, research has noted that diabetes can increase dementia risk.
Previous research has mostly focused on type 2 diabetes and its association with dementia. However, growing evidence is also highlighting a link between type 1 diabetes and dementia.
Now, a new large cohort study published in Neurology , suggests that people with type 2 diabetes have an elevated risk of dementia, but the risk may be even greater among those with type 1 diabetes.
This highlights the need to better understand the mechanisms connecting diabetes and cognitive decline. However, the researchers caution that the findings show an association rather than a cause-and-effect relationship.
The large cohort study analyzed data from the All of Us Research Program . This is a nationwide U.S. research initiative that links electronic health records with survey data to investigate long-term health outcomes.
Researchers examined whether different forms of diabetes were associated with the development of dementia in adults aged 50 years and older.
Among 283,772 participants included in the analysis, researchers identified 5,442 people with type 1 diabetes and 51,511 with type 2 diabetes. The participants had an average age of 64 years and were followed for an average of 2.4 years.
During the study period, 2,348 people developed dementia. This included 144 of the participants with type 1 diabetes (2.6%), 942 of those with type 2 diabetes (1.8%), and 1,262 of the 226,819 participants without diabetes (0.6%).
After adjusting for factors such as age, sex, race and ethnicity, and education, the researchers estimated that people with type 1 diabetes were nearly three times as likely to develop dementia as those without diabetes.
People with type 2 diabetes were about twice as likely to develop dementia compared with people without diabetes.
Even after adjusting for lifestyle factors, such as smoking and alcohol use , the association remained strong. Participants with type 1 diabetes still had more than twice the risk of dementia relative to those without diabetes.
Study author Annie Pederson , MPH, research fellow at the Boston University School of Public Health, was surprised at the magnitude of the association:
“As life expectancy among people with type 1 diabetes continues to increase, this elevated risk of dementia highlights the importance of understanding the neurologic challenges this population may face with aging, and underscores the need for greater awareness, monitoring, and targeted prevention strategies.”
The researchers also found that increased dementia risk linked to diabetes appeared broadly consistent across demographic groups.
When researchers analyzed the data by sex, type 1 diabetes was associated with higher dementia risk in both females and males.