Dementia warning sign impacting your walk found in major study

Health research suggests that a declining walking pace in later life could serve as an early warning sign of dementia . The study, carried out by the University of Minnesota and Monash University, revealed that as the brain deteriorates, the ability to walk may become increasingly difficult. Researchers monitored people aged over 75 and found that those who lost 0.05 metres per second from their walking speed each year displayed signs of cognitive decline. This may be linked to the areas of the brain responsible for controlling movement and pace being impacted by cognitive deterioration. Over a seven-year period, the study tracked 17,000 elderly adults, assessing their walking speeds and cognitive function every two years. Those showing a decline in both areas were found to be at a significantly greater risk of developing dementia. This group, known as "dual decliners", accounted for approximately 178 diagnosed cases of dementia, equating to 11.3% of the total study participants. Those who showed no decline in either cognition or walking speed were least likely to receive a diagnosis, with just 0.3% affected. However, the study stopped short of establishing a wider connection between walking speed and dementia risk, reports Surrey Live . It found that those who slowed down but showed no existing signs of cognitive decline carried a similar risk to those whose walking speed remained unchanged, according to the Daily Record. However, the researchers suggest that a deterioration in both cognitive function and walking pace could indicate early warning signs of dementia, with speed and memory potentially being the most reliable indicators for assessing cognitive decline. Dr Taya Collyer, a biostatistician from Monash University who led the study, concluded: "Association between [brain] domains, such as processing speed and verbal fluency, with gait have been explained by the crossover in the underlying networks or pathology." The study added: "These results highlight the importance of gait in dementia risk assessment. "They suggest that dual decline in gait speed and memory measure may be the best combination to assess future decline." The research was published this week in JAMA Network Open.