The link between clusters of unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and the risk of young-onset dementia remains unclear. This study aimed to assess the impact of multiple unhealthy lifestyle behaviors on the risk of developing young-onset dementia, including all-cause dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular dementia. We analyzed nationwide Korean National Health Insurance Service data from individuals aged 40–60 years who underwent health screening in 2009 and were followed until 2018 or age 65. The Unhealthy Lifestyle Behavior Score (ULBS) was derived from smoking, heavy drinking, and non-regular exercise (physical inactivity). Outcomes included all-cause young-onset dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and vascular dementia. The study included 1,979,509 patients (average age 49.05 ± 5.96, 51.27% male), with distribution across ULBS categories as follows: 14.5% ULBS 0, 62.3% ULBS 1, 19.5% ULBS 2, and 3.7% ULBS 3. After adjusting for multiple variables, patients with ULBS 1, 2, and 3 showed a significantly increased risk of all-cause young-onset dementia compared to those with ULBS 0 in a dose-response relationship. (Adjusted hazard ratio 95% CI: 1.147 1.077–1.221, 1.486 1.376–1.604, and 1.909 1.704–2.138, respectively). The accumulation of unhealthy lifestyle behaviors is significantly linked to a higher risk of all-cause young-onset dementia. These findings underscore the importance of promoting healthy lifestyle choices to mitigate the risk of developing young-onset dementia.
Choi et al. (Thu,) studied this question.