Cognition down in apple-shaped seniors
From Washington, D.C., at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience
An expanding waistline could indicate decreasing cognitive function as people age, according to a new study.
Previous studies had identified a link between type 2 diabetes and memory problems. Other research suggested that apple-shaped people, who have a high waist-to-hip ratio, are more likely to have diabetes than are pear-shaped people, who carry their weight in their buttocks and thighs.
“We wanted to know, ‘Can you use body shape as an index for memory problems?'” says Kristoffer Rhoads of the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Medical Center in Seattle.