Research highlights:
- Middle-aged black women with good heart health were less likely to show declines in mental function than middle-aged black women with poor heart health.
- In this study, heart health was unrelated to cognitive decline among middle-aged white women.
- Clinical trials are needed to determine whether improving heart health in middle-aged black women can slow cognitive decline and reduce the risk of dementia.
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DALLAS, April 24, 2024 — Good heart health is associated with lower mental processing speed and cognitive decline among middle-aged black women, but not among middle-aged white women. That's not the case, according to new research published today in the newspaper. American Heart Association Journalan open-access peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.
“Take care of your heart, and your brain will benefit as well,” says study lead author Dr. Imke Janssen, professor of family and preventive medicine at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. “Improving the cardiovascular health of women in their 40s is important to prevent Alzheimer's disease and dementia later in life and maintain independent living.”
Previous research has linked heart health to a lower risk of cognitive decline. This decline can begin years before dementia develops, Janssen explained. Questions that need to be answered include understanding when the cognitive benefits of heart health emerge, whether they occur across different races, and whether they affect different types of brain function, including reasoning. included.
In this study, researchers compared key heart health indicators known as the American Heart Association's “Life's Essential 8” for middle-aged black and white women every 1 to 2 years over 20 years. Cognitive tests administered to women were compared.
necessities of life 8TM This includes objectively measured weight, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and cholesterol, as well as self-reported health behaviors such as eating healthy foods, physical activity, smoking cessation, and getting enough sleep.
Cognitive tests assessed processing speed and working memory. Processing speed is the speed at which the brain accurately recognizes visual and verbal information, and is necessary for everyday activities such as driving. In this study, cognitive processing speed was assessed as the speed at which a person quickly and accurately recognizes a sequence of numbers, objects, images, or patterns. Working memory is the ability to remember and use small pieces of information for everyday tasks, such as remembering names or doing calculations.
The study found that the only difference in cognitive decline between races was processing speed, not working memory. in particular:
- Based on Life's Essential 8 metrics, Black women with poor heart health experienced a 10% decline in processing speed over 20 years. Their scores were worse on all eight risk factors for heart disease, especially blood pressure and smoking.
- In contrast, black women with better heart health showed little decline in mental processing over the 20-year study.
- Processing speed did not decrease among white women with poorer heart health.
- Heart health had no effect on working memory in either black or white women.
“We were surprised that we did not find similar results to previous studies that showed poorer cognitive function in black and white men and women, and that cardiovascular health was better in white people than in people in the black subgroup. We found that it was more important for adults,” Janssen said. “These differences may be due to the fact that participants were younger because they began cognitive testing in their mid-40s, whereas previous studies began with adults approximately 10 to 20 years older. The next step is to optimize heart health in midlife Black women to slow cognitive aging, maximize independence, and reduce racial disparities in dementia risk. This is a clinical trial to see if it can be reduced.
Several limitations may have affected the study results. The study included women from a single study site and relied on self-reported measures of heart health, which may have been inaccurate. Additionally, this study did not include measures that might account for racial disparities in access to health care or the potential impact of structural racism on Black participants.
Research background and details:
- The study involved 363 black women and 402 white women from the Chicago-based Study of Women's Health Nationwide (SWAN).
- SWAN Group in Chicago began cognitive testing in 1997. The woman at that time was 42 years old and 52 years old. Cognitive testing continued every 1 to 2 years until 2017.
- The analytic sample consisted of 765 women who provided 5,079 cognitive processing speed and 4,933 working memory assessments over a 20-year period.
- Heart health according to Life's Essential 8 was assessed only at enrollment.
Co-authors, disclosure information, and funding sources are listed in the manuscript.
The study, published in the scientific journal of the American Heart Association, is peer-reviewed. The statements and conclusions in each manuscript are solely the opinions of the study authors and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of the Society. The Association makes no representations or warranties regarding its accuracy or reliability. The association is primarily funded by individuals. Foundations and corporations (including pharmaceuticals, device manufacturers, and other companies) also make contributions, which help fund specific programs and events for the association. The Society has strict policies in place to ensure that these relationships do not influence scientific content. Revenues from pharmaceutical companies, biotech companies, device manufacturers, health insurance companies, and the association's overall financial information can be found here.
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