TL;DR
Turn your wind-down time into listening time
- Thousands of audiobooks, podcasts and originals
- Listen on your phone, tablet or Echo — also offline
- Cancel anytime
A long-term study of 316,542 South Korean adults found that people with the lowest hemoglobin levels had a higher rate of later dementia diagnoses; the highest levels were also associated with a modest increase in all-cause dementia risk. The observational findings do not show that hemoglobin causes dementia or that changing it prevents the disease.
A study tracking 316,542 South Korean adults found that hemoglobin levels measured during a routine health screening were associated with dementia diagnoses recorded over as long as 15 years. The research, presented at the ECNP Congress in Munich and published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, does not show that hemoglobin causes dementia, but suggests routine blood-test results may offer clues about long-term health patterns linked to it.
The participants were aged 40 and older and had a national health screening in 2004 or 2005. Researchers grouped them into five bands according to hemoglobin level, from the lowest fifth to the highest fifth, and used national health insurance records to identify new dementia diagnoses through the end of 2019.
Compared with the group that had the lowest dementia rate, people in the lowest hemoglobin fifth had a 16% higher risk of all-cause dementia. Those in the highest fifth had a 7% higher risk. These figures describe associations in this study; they do not mean that an individual’s personal chance of dementia rises by those amounts if their hemoglobin is low or high.
The results differed by diagnosis. The lowest hemoglobin group had a 14% higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease than the reference group. For vascular dementia, the lowest group had a 19% higher risk and the highest group an 18% higher risk. The association for vascular dementia did not follow a simple pattern across all five groups. Researchers also reported that the overall relationship was clearer and more consistent among women than men.
What Routine Blood Results May Signal
Hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen through the body. It is routinely measured in standard blood tests, making it a familiar and relatively accessible measure compared with specialist scans or emerging dementia biomarkers. The study raises the possibility that existing health records could help researchers examine links between physical health and brain health over time.
That possibility is not the same as a screening test for dementia. The researchers did not establish that hemoglobin can predict who will develop the condition, nor did they test whether acting on a hemoglobin result changes dementia risk. The findings may help guide further research into how wider health conditions relate to later brain health, but should not be used to diagnose dementia or estimate an individual’s outlook.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
How Researchers Tracked Hemoglobin
Hemoglobin levels can be affected by a range of health factors. Low levels are commonly associated with anemia, while unusually high levels may be linked to smoking, dehydration, lung or heart disease, or other medical conditions. The study examined measured levels and later recorded diagnoses; it did not establish which underlying factors accounted for the associations.
Lead researcher Dr Hyun Soo Kim, an assistant professor at Dong-A University College of Medicine in Busan, said the findings should be understood as evidence of a possible marker of broader physical vulnerability, not proof that hemoglobin itself causes dementia. The large cohort and extended records offer a long view, but the research remains observational and comes from adults screened in one country.
“The findings do not show that hemoglobin itself causes dementia, but suggest that abnormal hemoglobin levels may be a visible marker of wider physical vulnerability relevant to brain health.”
— Dr Hyun Soo Kim, lead researcher
Limits of the Dementia Link
Because the research was observational, it can show that hemoglobin levels and later dementia diagnoses occurred together more often in certain groups, but it cannot establish that one caused the other. Other health conditions or factors may help explain the pattern. Researchers also noted that early, undiagnosed dementia processes could affect nutrition, frailty, weight loss or anemia, potentially contributing to the association.
The study does not establish why the relationship differed by dementia type or why it appeared more consistent in women. Nor does it show whether the findings apply to populations with different backgrounds or health systems. No prevention strategy based on raising or lowering hemoglobin was tested.
Research Needed Beyond This Cohort
Further studies will need to test the association in people from a wider range of backgrounds and examine what may account for the different patterns by dementia type and sex. Researchers will also need to determine whether hemoglobin adds useful information beyond other health measures and whether any intervention can alter risk; this study did not answer those questions.
For now, Kim said an abnormal hemoglobin result should be discussed with a doctor because it may point to an underlying health issue. The researchers specifically cautioned against taking iron supplements or attempting to change hemoglobin levels as a way to prevent dementia.
Key Questions
Does low hemoglobin cause dementia?
No causal link was established. The study was observational and found an association between hemoglobin groups and later diagnoses; it cannot show that low hemoglobin caused dementia.
What did the study find about high hemoglobin?
The highest hemoglobin group had a 7% higher risk of all-cause dementia than the study’s reference group. For vascular dementia, that group had an 18% higher risk, though the pattern across all five hemoglobin groups was not straightforward.
Should I take iron to reduce dementia risk?
No such benefit was tested. The lead researcher warned against taking iron or trying to raise or lower hemoglobin to prevent dementia. Discuss abnormal results with a qualified health professional.
Can a routine blood test predict whether I will develop dementia?
The study does not establish hemoglobin as a dementia prediction or screening test. It found group-level associations in one large cohort, not a reliable individual forecast.
Source: rss
Halloween Picks
halloween
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
