Want to reduce your risk of dementia? Pick up an instrument or take a foreign trip

 

Playing the piano, foreign travel and socialising with friends are among the most powerful ways to reduce the risk of developing dementia, according to new research from Trinity College Dublin.
            
The study has found that engaging in physically, socially, and intellectually stimulating activities in middle age is one of the most powerful ways to boost cognition — even for people with increased genetic or familial risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
 
The findings published today [April 21] in the Journal of Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment and Disease Monitoring, show that cognitive health can be strengthened in midlife with lifestyle interventions that are both accessible and cost-effective.
 
Professor Lorina Naci from Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience and the Global Brain Health Institute, explained: “We have known for some time that lifestyle activities, such as exercise, can stave off cognitive decline in older adults.  We were surprised to see that stimulating everyday activities significantly boost cognition in mid-life, decades before age-related cognitive decline sets in.
 
“Crucially, we saw that bigger benefits came from a mix of different activities, rather than one single one. Our results suggest that variety is key and that a combination of physical, social, and mental stimulation is most effective for boosting brain health.”
 
What did the research find?
 
The research team analysed data from 700 cognitively healthy adults aged 40–59 from across Ireland and the UK who are participating in a 10-year longitudinal study. One third of participants carry genetic risk for late-life Alzheimer’s Disease.
 
The study found that a stimulating activity can play a greater role than the strongest common genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer’s disease – the Apolipoprotein E ε4 – in shaping cognitive health in mid-life. Put simply, the positive association for cognition found for these lifestyle activities was stronger than the negative association with genetic risk.
 
This association was found at the participants’ first visit to clinical research facilities for the longitudinal study. Further study of this group of participants over the 10-year study will determine how this positive association evolves over time.
 
The activities tested included socialising with family or friends, practicing a musical instrument, practicing an artistic pastime, engagement in physical activities, reading, practicing a second language, and travelling.
 
Depressive symptoms and traumatic brain injury were identified as the most harmful modifiable risk factors for cognition. Other negative contributors to cognition included diabetes, hypertension, poor sleep, and hearing impairment.
 
Unlike previous research focusing on older adults, this work demonstrates that cognitive reserve can be strengthened decades before disease onset, with lifestyle interventions that are both accessible and cost-effective.
 
What is the impact of this research? 
 
Dementia presently affects up to 65,000 people in Ireland, around 1 million people in the UK, and 48 million worldwide. Globally, dementia is projected to affect to 150 million people in 2050, and its associated costs will triple to €3 trillion.
 
The findings of the study, according to Professor Naci, have meaningful real-world implications by shifting dementia prevention from a distant clinical concern to an immediate, actionable opportunity for young adults in their everyday life.
 
Professor Naci explained: “This research is empowering: it shows that engaging in a diverse range of stimulating activities – such as socialising, learning new skills, staying physically active, and nurturing mental health – can actively strengthen cognitive resilience decades before any symptoms appear, even for those with genetic risk and family history of dementia.
 
“This reframes brain health as something people can shape through attainable lifestyle choices, encouraging earlier and sustained engagement in enjoyable activities. It also shows that governments who are serious about reducing the future burden of dementia need to prioritise lifestyle mid-life interventions, including mental health support, cardiovascular risk management, brain injury prevention, and access to lifelong learning and community engagement programmes.”
 
The study forms part of the PREVENT-Dementia programme, the world’s largest multi-site and longitudinal initiative investigating the origins and early diagnosis of dementia in mid-life at-risk individuals. The Dublin site at Trinity College Dublin is led by Professor Naci. The research team works closely with teams at other four sites in the UK – Cambridge, Oxford, Edinburgh universities and Imperial College London.
 
The paper, ‘The Relative Contribution of Modifiable and Non-modifiable Factors for Determining Cognition in Mid-life Individuals at Risk for Late-life Alzheimer’s Disease’ in Journal of Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring, is available to to read on the journal website.

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Journal

Alzheimer s & Dementia Diagnosis Assessment & Disease Monitoring

DOI

10.1002/dad2.70303 

Physicists refute famous 2025 study claiming daylight saving time poses severe health risks

 

In 2025, Lara Weed and Jamie M. Zeitzer of Stanford University published an article linking the practice of seasonal time changes (Daylight Saving Time) to negative health outcomes, ranging from acute symptoms (heart attacks and strokes) to chronic conditions (obesity). Now, Professors José María Martín-Olalla (University of Seville) and Jorge Mira Pérez (University of Santiago de Compostela), after analyzing the methodology applied in that study, have concluded that "what the world read as scientific evidence against the time change has turned out to be a mathematical illusion."

The same journal that disseminated the controversial article, PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences), has just published a letter signed by Martín-Olalla and Mira Pérez, demonstrating that the study’s conclusions are not supported by actual evidence.

The original article by Weed and Zeitzer gained significant global traction in the fall of 2025 due to its striking conclusions and its use of the PLACES database (Population Level Analysis and Community Estimates). This database, managed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), contains information on the prevalence of 29 syndromes and diseases at the local level. The PLACES data were contrasted against a circadian model developed by the authors.

Eating non-organic fruits, vegetables, whole grains = increased chance of early onset lung cancer

 

Pesticide residue may play a role in increased rates of lung cancer in non-smokers under age 50

A diet rich in fruit, vegetables and whole grains is generally recommended for better health and to lower the risk of cancer and other diseases.  

However, new research from USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC, presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research suggests that this type of diet may put non-smoking Americans under the age of 50 at greater risk of developing lung cancer.  

“Our research shows that younger non-smokers who eat a higher quantity of healthy foods than the general population are more likely to develop lung cancer,” said Jorge Nieva, MD, a medical oncologist and lung cancer specialist with USC Norris and lead investigator of the study. “These counter-intuitive findings raise important questions about an unknown environmental risk factor for lung cancer related to otherwise beneficial food that needs to be addressed.”  

Nieva and his fellow researchers speculate that this risk factor may be the pesticides used to keep crops pest-free. Commercially produced (non-organic) fruits, vegetables and whole grains are more likely to be associated with a higher residue of pesticides than dairy, meat and many processed foods, according to Nieva. He also notes that agricultural workers exposed to pesticides typically have higher rates of lung cancer, which adds credence to the theory.  

The study also showed that young women who don’t smoke have a higher incidence of lung cancer than men, and that women tended to also have a diet higher in produce and whole grains than men.  

A New Epidemic of Lung Cancer 

Lung cancer has typically been a disease that affects older adults (the average age of lung cancer onset is 71), men more than women, and smokers. 

Smoking rates have fallen since the mid-1980s, which has led to fewer lung cancer cases across the United States, except for one unique group — non-smokers age 50 and younger, especially women, who are now more likely to get lung cancer than men.  

To investigate this trend, researchers launched the Epidemiology of Young Lung Cancer Project, which surveyed 187 patients who were diagnosed with lung cancer by age 50. Patients provided details on demographics, diet, smoking history and lung cancer diagnosis.  

Most patients had never smoked and had a form of lung cancer biologically different from lung cancer caused by smoking. A 2021 study from the Epidemiology of Young Lung Cancer Project, the Genomics of Young Lung Cancer Project, found that the subtypes of lung cancer seen in people under 40 were distinct from lung cancer in older adults.  

Researchers used the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), a ranking of the overall quality of Americans’ diet on a scale of 1-100, to compare patients’ diets with the broader United States population. Young non-smoking lung cancer patients had an average HEI score of 65 out of 100, compared to the national average of 57. Among participants in the study, women had higher HEI scores than men. 

On average, the young lung cancer patients ate more daily servings of fruit, vegetables and whole grains than the general population. For example, participants averaged 4.3 servings of dark green vegetable and legumes and 3.9 servings of whole grains per day, while the average U.S. adult eats 3.6 servings of dark green vegetables and legumes and 2.6 servings of whole grains per day. 

More Research Needed 

The link between pesticides and lung cancer in young people, especially women, needs more research, said Nieva. 

In the study, researchers did not test specific foods for pesticides. Instead, they used published data on average pesticide levels for food categories such as fruits, vegetables and grains to estimate exposure. The next step, said Nieva, is to confirm the link by directly measuring pesticide levels in blood or urine samples from patients. This could also help reveal whether or not some pesticides increase lung cancer risk more than others. 

“This work represents a critical step toward identifying modifiable environmental factors that may contribute to lung cancer in young adults," said Nieva. “Our hope is that these insights can guide both public health recommendations and future investigation into lung cancer prevention.”  

Some of my supplements

1. Theobromine, a natural compound found in cocoa and chocolate, offers significant health benefits, including enhanced cardiovascular function (lowering blood pressure), improved brain function, and potential anti-inflammatory effects. As a mild stimulant, it improves focus and mood without the severe jittery side effects of caffeine, while also acting as a vasodilator and cough suppressant.

2. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is a potent antioxidant and energy-promoting compound essential for cellular function, particularly in high-energy organs like the heart. Key benefits include improving congestive heart failure symptoms, lowering blood pressure, reducing statin-induced muscle pain, preventing migraines, and potentially boosting fertility.

3. Astaxanthin is a potent, natural red-pigmented carotenoid antioxidant found in microalgae and seafood, recognized for its strong anti-inflammatory and cellular-protective properties. It supports skin, eye, heart, and brain health, with studies suggesting improvements in skin elasticity, eye fatigue, cognitive function, and immune response.

4. Pterostilbene is a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound found in blueberries and grapes, known for superior bioavailability compared to resveratrol. It supports the body by combating oxidative stress, promoting cognitive health, reducing inflammation, managing blood sugar/cholesterol, and offering potential anti-cancer properties.

5. TMG 

Cardiovascular Health: TMG is highly effective at reducing homocysteine, a compound that, when high, can lead to cardiovascular issues. It is widely used to maintain healthy blood pressure and cardiovascular function.

• Athletic Performance and Body Composition: TMG is known to boost muscle power, strength, and endurance, particularly in combination with high-intensity training. It can help enhance muscle protein synthesis and reduce fatigue. Studies also suggest it can reduce total body fat mass.
• Liver Health: TMG helps improve fatty liver conditions and protects the liver by encouraging healthy function and reducing alcohol damage.
• Cellular Protection and Inflammation: As an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, TMG (a known osmolyte) helps protect cells against stress and maintains cellular hydration.
• Insulin Sensitivity: It can aid in improving insulin resistance, potentially helping with better metabolism.

People who consume ultra-processed foods have worse muscle health

 

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Radiological Society of North America

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image: 

Representative axial T1-weighted spin-echo thigh MRI scans in (A) a 61-year-old female participant and (B) a 62-year-old female participant. Both participants were of similar age and body mass index (BMI, calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared). Both had Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly scores above the mean score in the study. According to the World Health Organization definition, the participant in B qualified as having abdominal obesity (abdominal circumference ≥ 88 cm). Abdominal circumference is a measure of central obesity that captures fat distribution and serves as an indicator of cardiometabolic health. Compared with the participant in A, the participant in B had a higher proportion of ultra-processed food (UPF) in their diet (87.1% vs 29.5%) and exhibited fattier thigh muscles bilaterally, with Goutallier grade (GG) for all thigh muscles summing to 25 for the participant in A and 38 for the participant in B.

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Credit: Radiological Society of North America (RSNA)

OAK BROOK, Ill. – Researchers found that a diet high in ultra-processed foods is associated with higher amounts of fat stored inside thigh muscles, regardless of calorie or fat intake, physical activity or sociodemographic factors in a population at risk for knee osteoarthritis. Results of the study were published today in Radiology, a journal of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). Higher amounts of intramuscular fat in the thigh could potentially increase the risk for knee osteoarthritis.

Ultra-processed foods usually have longer shelf lives and can be highly appealing and convenient. They contain a combination of sugar, fat, salt and carbohydrates which affect the brain’s reward system, making it hard to stop eating. These foods include breakfast cereals, margarines/spreads, packaged snacks, hot dogs, soft drinks and energy drinks, candies and desserts, frozen pizzas, ready-to-eat meals, mass-produced packaged breads and buns, which all include synthesized ingredients.

“Over the past decades, in parallel to the rising prevalences of obesity and knee osteoarthritis, the use of natural ingredients in our diets has steadily diminished and been replaced by industrially-processed, artificially flavored, colored and chemically altered food and beverages, which are classified as ultra-processed foods,” said the study’s lead author, Zehra Akkaya, M.D., researcher and consultant for the Clinical & Translational Musculoskeletal Imaging group at University of California, San Francisco, Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging.

Dr. Akkaya and the research team set out to assess the relationship of ultra-processed food intake and intramuscular fat in the thigh.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from 615 individuals who participated in the Osteoarthritis Initiative who were not yet affected by osteoarthritis, based on imaging. The Osteoarthritis Initiative is a nationwide research study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, that helps researchers better understand how to prevent and treat knee osteoarthritis.

“Osteoarthritis is an increasingly prevalent and costly global health issue,” Dr. Akkaya said. “It constitutes one of the largest non-cancer-related health care costs in the United States and around the world. It is highly linked to obesity and unhealthy lifestyle choice.”

Of the 615 individuals, (275 men, 340 women) the average age was 60 years. On average, participants were overweight with a body mass index (BMI) of 27. Approximately 41% of the foods they consumed over the prior year were ultra-processed.  

The researchers found that the more ultra-processed foods people consumed, the more intramuscular fat they had in their thigh muscles, regardless of caloric intake. On MRI, this can be seen as fatty degeneration of the muscle, where streaks of fat replace muscle fibers.

“In addition to investigating the quality of our modern diet in relationship to thigh muscle composition, in this study, we used widely available, non-enhanced MRI, making our approach accessible and practical for routine clinical use and future studies,” Dr. Akkaya said. “These MRIs do not require advanced or costly technology, which means they can be easily incorporated into standard diagnostic practices.”

By exploring how ultra-processed food consumption impacts muscle composition, this study provides valuable insights into dietary influences on muscle health.

“This research underscores the vital role of nutrition in muscle quality in the context of knee osteoarthritis,” Dr. Akkaya said. “Addressing obesity is a primary objective and frontline treatment for knee osteoarthritis, yet the findings from this research emphasize that dietary quality warrants greater attention, and weight loss regimens should take into account diet quality beyond caloric restriction and exercise.”

Targeting modifiable lifestyle factors—mainly prevention of obesity via a healthy, balanced diet and adequate exercise—has been the mainstay of initial management for knee osteoarthritis.

In addition to other health benefits, reducing ultra-processed food consumption may help preserve muscle quality which in turn could alleviate the burden of knee osteoarthritis.

“In recent years, several researchers have shown detrimental impacts of ultra-processed food on various health outcomes but data on the relationship of ultra-processed food and body composition in the context of knee osteoarthritis is limited,” Dr. Akkaya said. “This is the first study assessing ultra-processed food’s impact on thigh muscle composition using MRI. By exploring how ultra-processed food consumption impacts muscle composition, this study provides valuable insights into dietary influences on muscle health."

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“Ultra-processed Foods and Muscle Fat Infiltration at Thigh MRI: Data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative.” Collaborating with Dr. Akkaya were Gabby B. Joseph, Ph.D., Katharina Ziegeler, M.D., Wynton M. Sims, M.D., M.P.H., John A. Lynch, Ph.D., Virginie Kreutzinger, M.D., Charles E. McCulloch, Ph.D., Nancy E. Lane, M.D., Michael C. Nevitt, Ph.D., and Thomas M. Link, M.D., Ph.D.

Radiology is edited by Suhny Abbara, M.D., FACR, MSCCT, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida, and owned and published by the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (https://pubs.rsna.org/journal/radiology)

RSNA is an association of radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists promoting excellence in patient care and health care delivery through education, research and technologic innovation. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. (RSNA.org)

For patient-friendly information on musculoskeletal MRI, visit RadiologyInfo.org.

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Journal

Radiology

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Ultra-processed Foods and Muscle Fat Infiltration at Thigh MRI: Data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative

Article Publication Date

14-Apr-2026

Timing exercise to match body clock chronotype may lower cardiovascular disease risk

Alignment with ‘eveningness’ or ‘morningness’ lowered risk factors and boosted sleep quality more effectively than mismatched timing; Include chronotype assessment in exercise prescriptions, suggest the researchers

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BMJ Group

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Timing exercise to match body clock chronotype—the natural predisposition to morning or evening alertness—may lower cardiovascular disease risk among those who are already vulnerable, suggests research published in the open access journal Open Heart.  

Chronotype alignment boosted sleep quality and lowered risk factors, such as high blood pressure, fasting glucose, and ‘bad’ cholesterol, more effectively than mismatched exercise timing, the trial results indicate. 

The findings prompt the researchers to suggest that individual chronotype assessment should be included in exercise prescriptions for those who are at risk of cardiovascular disease. 

Exercise lowers the risks of heart disease/stroke and diabetes, and whether someone is naturally a morning lark or a night owl—an innate disposition that affects sleep-wake patterns, hormone secretion, and energy availability across the day—influences exercise performance and adherence, explain the researchers. 

But it’s not clear if the benefits of exercise might depend on its timing relative to a person’s chronotype. 

To find out, they assessed the chronotypes of 150 people aged between 40 and 60, using the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire and 48 hour core body temperature.  

All the participants had at least one cardiovascular risk factor, such as high blood pressure, overweight or obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle (no or minimal structured physical activity in the past 3 months).  

Participants with a family history of premature cardiovascular disease (58; 43%) were also included. This was defined as affecting a first degree male relative before the age of 55 or a first degree female relative before the age of 65. 

They were randomly assigned to exercising at a time that either matched their chronotype  or at a time that didn’t, between 8:00 to 11:00 hours or between 18:00 to 21:00 hours. They were asked to do 5 sessions of supervised moderate intensity aerobic exercise (brisk/treadmill walking), each lasting 40 minutes, every week for 12 weeks.  

In all, 134 participants completed all 60 exercise sessions: 70 were morning larks, 34 of whom had been matched to their chronotype; 64 were night owls, 30 of whom had been matched to their chronotype. 

Blood pressure, heart rate variability, fasting glucose, VO₂ max (maximal oxygen consumption during exertion), ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol levels, and sleep quality were all measured before the start of the trial and 3 days after it finished. 

Analysis of the results showed that cardiovascular disease risk factors, aerobic fitness, and sleep quality improved in both groups after 12 weeks. 

But matching exercise with chronotype produced larger improvements in blood pressure, autonomic function (involuntary bodily processes, including heart rate), aerobic capacity, metabolic markers, and sleep quality than mismatched exercise. 

These improvements were especially noticeable in sleep quality—an increase of 3.4 compared with 1.2 points—and systolic blood pressure—the higher of the two numbers in a reading.  

This fell by 10.8 mm Hg in those whose exercise sessions had been matched to their chronotype compared with a drop of 5.5 mm Hg among those whose exercise sessions had been mismatched. 

The fall in systolic blood pressure was even larger among those who had high blood pressure to begin with: their systolic blood pressure fell by an average of 13.6 mm Hg compared with 7.1 mm Hg in those whose exercise sessions had been mismatched. 

Although improvements were observed across both chronotypes, overall, the effects were larger among morning larks than among night owls. 

The researchers acknowledge that the study participants were drawn only from government hospitals in Lahore and that those with intermediate chronotypes were excluded, which may limit the wider applicability of the findings. 

But their findings echo those of other studies, they point out: “This study adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that the timing of exercise when aligned with an individual’s internal biological clock can significantly enhance health outcomes,” they write. 

“Aligning exercise with chronotype may entrain peripheral clocks in skeletal muscle, adipose tissue, and vasculature more effectively, enhancing metabolic efficiency and reducing inflammation, both critical factors in cardiometabolic health,” they explain.

And they conclude: “Integrating the principle of ‘chrono-exercise,’ scheduling workouts according to an individual’s internal biological clock, may offer a novel and impactful approach to enhancing outcomes in preventive cardiovascular and metabolic health.”

Commenting on the findings, Dr Rajiv Sankaranarayanan, of the British Cardiovascular Society, which co-owns Open Heart, said: “From a UK perspective, this study’s findings are highly relevant to preventive cardiology within the NHS, where scalable, cost-effective interventions are essential. Incorporating simple chronotype assessment into lifestyle advice could enhance adherence and outcomes, particularly in patients with hypertension or cardiometabolic risk.  

“However, before widespread implementation, validation in more diverse, real-world UK populations (including shift workers and multi-ethnic cohorts), is needed. Overall, this study supports a shift toward more personalised, circadian-informed exercise prescriptions in routine cardiovascular care.”

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Journal

Open Heart

DOI

10.1136/openhrt-2025-003573 

 

Common, treatable ear conditions = higher odds of dementia. Treatment may help.

 A new study published in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, the official peer-reviewed publication of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF), finds that two common and treatable causes of conductive hearing loss—eardrum perforations and cholesteatoma, a type of abnormal skin growth in the middle ear—are associated with higher odds of dementia. Notably, the study also found that treatment, whether through surgery or hearing aids, was associated with a reduction in that elevated risk.

The findings, first presented at the AAO-HNSF 2025 Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO in Indianapolis, Indiana, add to a growing body of evidence linking hearing loss to cognitive decline and raise an important question: if the underlying cause of hearing loss is treatable, could treating it help protect the brain?

"We have known for some time that untreated hearing loss is related to worse cognition in adults. This study shows that specific forms of surgically addressable hearing loss are also adversely related to cognition. But what is most exciting is that treatment with routine surgery may improve both the hearing and possibly reduce the risk of dementia,” said Justin S. Golub, MD, MS, corresponding author on the paper from the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.

Researchers at Columbia University and the University of Utah analyzed data from more than 363,000 participants in the All of Us Research Program, a large and diverse national health dataset sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. They found that participants with eardrum perforations had more than twice the odds of dementia compared to those without, and those with cholesteatoma had nearly twice the odds. Otosclerosis, a condition affecting the bones of the middle ear, was not significantly associated with dementia in this study.

Importantly, when surgical treatment was accounted for in the analysis, the association between cholesteatoma and dementia became nonsignificant. Treatment with hearing aids also reduced the association for both conditions, suggesting that restoring hearing, whether through surgery or devices, may play a meaningful role in lowering dementia risk.