2008
Memory Loss Linked to Cholesterol?
Cholesterol has long been cited as bad for our health, known to increase risk for heart disease. New evidence suggests that one of the components of cholesterol HDL (the good cholesterol) may also play a role in how well older individuals retain their mental acuity.
A study of 3,673 civil servants found that participants with low levels of HDL were likely to suffer a decline in memory by the age of 60. The long-term investigation began in London in 1985. Blood samples were taken from the participants on two occasions, five years apart, and their short term verbal memory was assessed. Doctors recited a list of 20 words and the subjects were asked to write down as many as they remembered. The test was conducted at age 55 and again at age 60. Those with low HDL levels performed 27 percent worse at age 55, and at age 60 the gap was 63 percent worse compared to individuals with high levels of HDL.
The definition of low HDL was less than 40 milligrams per deciliter of blood, and high HDL was 60 mg or more. According to Archana Singh-Manoux, the lead author and a senior research fellow at University College London, and the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research, “A low level of HDL may be a risk factor for memory loss in late midlife, low HDL cholesterol might also be a risk factor for dementia.”