Lowering Blood Pressure May Help Cut Risk of Early Dementia, Study Finds

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests dramatically reducing blood pressure may help protect memory and thinking skills later in life, reports NBC News . The researchers examined more than 9,000 people over 50 years old, and those who cut their blood pressure to 120 were 19 percent less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which usually precedes Alzheimer's. "It offers genuine, concrete hope," says the Alzheimer's Association's Maria C. Carrillo. "Mild cognitive impairment is a known risk factor for dementia, and everyone who experiences dementia passes through MCI." According to preliminary findings, participants were 17 percent less likely to develop dementia. However, these results were not statistically significant because the study was stopped abruptly. "In very old people, we know that lowering blood pressure aggressively may not be good because they have rust in the pipes and they need the pressure," says Ronald Petersen at the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. "What you don't want people to do is double their blood pressure medicine tomorrow. They need to have a discussion with their primary care physician so they can get their blood pressure down in a controlled way."