Does Chronic Inflammation Cause Dementia?

Aging is the top risk factor for many chronic conditions, including dementia, and chronic progressive inflammation is the focus of the new field of study called inflammaging, reports Everyday Health . The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 60 percent of U.S. adults have at least one chronic inflammatory disease, which excludes Alzheimer's. According to INmuneBio chief executive Raymond Tesi, "Basically, the older we get, the hotter we get. Environmental and behavior factors like smoking, obesity, and lack of physical activity can also add to chronic inflammation, which in turn increases the chances of developing one or more chronic conditions." There is mounting evidence that inflammation or immune function plays a part in dementia, says Keenan Walker at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. "For example, there are a number of large genetic studies which looked at what genes put people at risk for Alzheimer's disease," he notes. "Many of the genes identified as 'big risk genes' are known to have roles in regulating people's immune functioning, as well as the aspects of immunity that regulate inflammation." Walker adds that the blood or cerebral spinal fluid of people with Alzheimer's or mild cognitive impairment contain evidence of higher inflammation, in comparison with persons lacking dementia.