MOST are aware that lifestyle factors like smoking, head injuries, and untreated hearing loss can push up the odds of dementia.
And now there’s mounting evidence that mental health problems should be added to the ever-growing list of risks to the brain.
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Experts have long known depression and dementia go hand in hand.
But new research from France shows several mental health disorders all at once – like anxiety and substance misuse – can have an equally, if not more, devastating effect on brain health.
Around one in four people in England will struggle with their mental health in any given year – most commonly depression or anxiety.
The scientists found people with just one mood or anxiety disorder were twice as likely to develop the memory-robbing condition, compared with people who didn’t.
The danger rose with every extra illness, soaring to 11 times higher for people battling four or more at once.
Those battling both depression and anxiety faced odds as high as 90 per cent.
“The effect of concurrent psychiatric disorders seems to be specific to dementia and suggests they may be early warning signs,” the authors wrote in the BMJ Mental Health.
Previous studies have backed up the idea that people with depression are more likely to develop dementia later in life.
Research published in May took this even further, finding that a persistently low mood could significantly hike the risk even in midlife.
For the new study, medics from Paul Brousse Hospital, tracked more than 3,600 patients aged over 45 at a Paris hospital for up to 14 years.
They all had at least one of the most common psychiatric disorders: depression, anxiety, psychosis, substance misuse, personality disorder and bipolar disorder.
The experts then tracked how long it took for dementia to be diagnosed after the first mental health problem appeared.
On average, dementia showed up about 18 months later.
But in some cases, the gap was much longer, stretching to as much as 13 years.
They suggested long-term stress and inflammation from mental illness may damage the brain, while some medications used to treat it could also play a role.
Another theory pointed to in the paper is that depression and anxiety share the same faulty pathways as diseases like Alzheimer’s, or that they may simply be early signs of dementia itself.
Earlier this month, a separate study found that reading other people’s faces as happy when they aren’t could be one of the first warning signs of dementia.
Scientists think that dementia damages areas of the brain like the hippocampus and amygdala – regions that help us read tone and facial expressions.
Dementia: the subtle signs and symptoms
Dementia symptoms can be subtle and vague at first.
As the disease progresses, symptoms can become more severe.
Some common early symptoms include:
- Memory problems: Difficulty remembering recent events, or putting things in unusual places
- Confusion: Disorientation or getting lost while driving
- Communication problems: Difficulty finding words or understanding what is being said
- Other problems: Reduced concentration, poor judgment, or changes in personality or behaviour
As dementia progresses, symptoms can include:
- Behavioural problems: Aggressive behaviour, withdrawal from friends and family, or difficulty controlling emotions
- Mobility problems: Reduced ability to move around, or freezing in place
- Other problems: Sleep problems, hallucinations, or misperceptions
If you notice any of these symptoms in yourself or someone else, , it’s important to speak with a doctor, as these are significant health concerns
