Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Feb 2025
Trends in modifiable risk factors for dementia among midlife adults in the United States: The National Health and nutrition examination survey 1999-2018.
Dementia has a large public health burden, and modifiable risk factors, particularly in midlife, may provide an opportunity for early prevention. We aimed to examine trends in age-adjusted prevalence of modifiable risk factors for dementia and the number of modifiable risk factors among midlife adults from 1999 to 2018. ⋯ The prevalence of diabetes and obesity increased in this large, nationally representative U.S. study population, while the prevalence of smoking decreased. More effective public health interventions are needed to mitigate the impact of these risk factors and ultimately reduce the burden of dementia in aging populations.