Stressful life events may be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease
AROUND 50 million people are affected by dementia and this figure could well triple by 2050.
According to a Spanish study, stress could be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, particularly if several stressful life events are experienced in midlife and during childhood.
People who experience stressful life events may be at greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life, researchers say.
To reach this conclusion, the authors of this study, published in ‘Annals of Neurology’, focused on 1,290 participants — volunteers with no cognitive impairment at the time of the study, but who had Alzheimer’s disease in their family.
They were asked about the number of stressful events in their lives (death of a loved one, period of unemployment, illness, etc.), their frequency and their age at the time they experienced them.
Researchers at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) also carried out clinical tests (lumbar punctures and MRI scans) to detect biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease.
MIDLIFE AND CHILDHOOD ARE KEY PERIODS
After analysing the data, the researchers found that the accumulation of stressful experiences during midlife was associated with higher levels of B-amyloid (AB) protein, which plays a key role in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
The researchers also found that the effects of stressful life experiences can differ according to sex.
In men, a greater number of stressful events was linked to an increase in betaamyloid (AB) protein, the accumulation of which marks the starting point of the disease.