Research Predicts Dementia Risk for Diabetics

Researchers say they have found a way to predict the risk of dementia for older adults with diabetes. The risk score was developed using information about nearly 30,000 people. All of them were age 60 or older and had type 2 diabetes. During a 10-year period, about 17% developed dementia. Researchers found that age, education level and six health problems were the strongest predictors of dementia. The problems included diabetic foot or eye disease and events of dangerously high or low blood sugar. These are all directly caused by diabetes. Most of the other conditions also are more common among diabetics. They included heart disease, depression, and stroke or related problems with circulation in the brain. Each risk factor was assigned a point total. Then researchers created a scoring system.