Study Identifies 3 Factors to Potentially Delay Dementia for 13 Years
Researchers found that normal blood pressure, no diabetes and not smoking were linked to nearly 13 more dementia-free years.
- On August 5, 2026, researchers published findings in Neurology Open Access linking midlife vascular health—specifically blood pressure, diabetes, and smoking—to dementia onset timing and dementia-free lifespans.
- Data from the ARIC study, tracking 12,409 adults for 26 years, found that avoiding type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and smoking can delay dementia onset by about 13 years.
- "Our findings argue that people need to actively avert these factors in midlife as a strategy for preserving brain health for more than a decade," said Dr. Josef Coresh, director of the Optimal Aging Institute at NYU Langone.
- Research identified health disparities: women remained dementia-free longer than men, while White participants lived 19.6 years without dementia compared to 16 years for Black participants.
- Vascular health is crucial for preserving brain function, as damage to blood vessels reduces oxygen delivery to the brain, underscoring the importance of managing these risk factors during middle age.
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Research Suggests Avoiding These 3 Things in Midlife Could Delay Dementia for Years
Fact checked by Nick BlackmerNew research found a link between better vascular health and more years free of dementia.Credit: Natalia Lebedinskaia / Getty ImagesA new study suggests that avoiding three vascular health factors could add 13 years of dementia-free life.Each of these factors—not smoking, not having diabetes, and maintaining normal blood pressure—can help support the health of the brain and blood vessels.However, experts caution that…
Your brain's future may depend on three key health factors in midlife.
Avoiding these 3 things during midlife could ward off dementia
Researchers have identified three specific health markers during people’s midlife years that can minimize risk for dementia, suggesting targeted prevention efforts could ward off dementia for more than a decade.
Kreiszeitung
High blood pressure, diabetes and smoking, according to a long-term study, shorten the dementia-free lifetime by up to 12.6 years.
The study included 12,409 people with an average age of 56 years who had no history of dementia at the beginning of the study.
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