In Older Adults, Type 2 Diabetes Tied to Decline in Verbal Skills Over 5 Years

A study published in Diabetologia found an association between type 2 diabetes (T2D) and a decline in verbal memory and fluency over five years in older adults living in an Australian community, reports Psych Central . Contrary to previous studies, the latest investigation determined shrinking brain volume often observed in older people with T2D had no direct connection to cognitive decline during this time period. Instead, those with T2D exhibited greater brain atrophy at the start of the study. Enrolled were 705 people, 55 to 90, including 348 with T2D and 357 without, who underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychological measures three times over a follow-up period of 4.6 years. Although diabetics showed greater brain atrophy at the beginning of the study, there was no difference in the rate of atrophy between those with and without T2D over the timeframe, nor evidence that the rate of brain atrophy directly impacted the diabetes-cognition relationship. Verbal fluency slightly increased on average each year in people lacking T2D, but deteriorated in those with T2D. "Such accelerated cognitive decline may contribute to executive difficulties in everyday activities and health behaviors — such as medication compliance — which in turn may poorly influence future vascular health and cognitive decline, and possibly an earlier onset of dementia in those with type 2 diabetes," the authors note.