Body Composition Patterns Linked to Risk of Neurodegenerative Diseases
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, July 24, 2024 -- Specific body composition patterns are associated with neurodegenerative diseases and brain aging, according to a study published online July 24 in Neurology.
Shishi Xu, M.D., Ph.D., from the West China Hospital of Sichuan University in Chengdu, and colleagues conducted a retrospective analysis using data from the U.K. Biobank to examine the associations between patterns of body composition and the risk of neurodegenerative diseases. The associations between different components and major patterns of body composition with the risk of neurodegenerative diseases was examined.
The researchers identified 8,224 new cases of neurodegenerative diseases among 412,691 participants (mean age, 56.0 years) over an average follow-up of 9.1 years. A lower rate of neurodegenerative diseases was seen in association with patterns identified as "fat-to-lean mass," "muscle strength," "bone density," and "leg-dominant fat distribution" (hazard ratios, 0.74 to 0.94), while a higher rate of neurodegenerative diseases was seen in association with "central obesity" and "arm-dominant fat distribution" patterns (hazard ratios, 1.13 to 1.18). Across different susceptibility groups, stratification analysis yielded comparable risk estimates. Of the observed associations, 10.7 to 35.3 percent were mediated by cardiovascular diseases, especially cerebrovascular diseases. The findings for "central obesity," "muscle strength," and "arm-dominant fat distribution" patterns were corroborated in the subcohort analysis of brain aging biomarkers.
"Our results underscore the feasibility of improving body composition, including mitigating cardiovascular disease burden at an early stage, as a strategy to reduce future neurodegenerative disease risk," the authors write.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted July 2024
Read this next
Few Adolescents With Obesity Prescribed Obesity Medications
FRIDAY, June 13, 2025 -- Despite an increase in the prevalence of prescribing, only 0.5 percent of U.S. adolescents with obesity were prescribed an obesity medication in 2023...
Real-World Weight Loss With Semaglutide, Tirzepatide Less Than That Seen in Clinical Trials
THURSDAY, June 12, 2025 -- For patients with obesity initiating pharmacotherapy with semaglutide or tirzepatide, weight loss at one year is 8.7 percent on average, which is lower...
Adherence to Healthy Diet Improves Cardiometabolic Risk, Even Without Weight Loss
WEDNESDAY, June 11, 2025 -- A healthy diet improves cardiometabolic risk factors, even if not associated with weight loss (WL), according to a study published online June 5...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.