A new study associates anemia with the increased risk of developing dementia for older people.
Dr. Kristina Yaffe of the University of California, San Francisco together with her colleagues, may have found linkage between anemia and dementia.
“People with anemia lack enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body and fewer healthy red blood cells could mean less oxygen travelling to the brain and may result in cognitive decline,” she wrote in the report.
Several conditions, including kidney disease and nutritional deficiencies, can cause anemia.
The research team analyzed the medical records of 2,552 people between the ages of 70 and 79 at the beginning of the study period. They were tested for anemia early in the study and were given memory and thinking assessments over a follow-up period of 11 years.
Their analysis showed that 393 out of 2,552 participants were already anemic at the start of the study. At the end, 445, or about 18 percent of participants, had developed dementia based on records of their hospital visit. The numbers decreased though when the patients started taking prescribed dementia medication as verified by their memory and thinking assessment results.
Of those who were anemic at the start, 23 percent developed dementia, compared to 17 percent of the 2,000 others who were not anemic.
In addition to that, the increased risk for dementia associated to anemia did not change based on race or gender.
Yaffe stated, “That six percent difference is a large change in risk on a population level.” She also added, "I think doctors should be aware of this important connection especially as both anemia and dementia are common with aging.”
“It is possible that a third influence, like chronic kidney disease, caused both anemia and dementia in the participants with both conditions, but the authors tried to rule that out,” Yaffe said.
A low iron level, which is an indication of anemia, may lead to other complications such as heart disease on older people. It is advisable for patients to consume food that are rich in iron like spinach or take in over-the-counter vitamins to normalize their iron level.
The researchers suggested that future research should investigate whether correcting anemia through medication may also improve cognitive health.
This study was published in the July 31 issue of the online journal Neurology.
