Having an elevated resting heart rate in old age may be an independent risk factor of dementia, according to a study at Karolinska Institutet published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association. Since resting heart rate is easy to measure and can be lowered through exercise or medical treatment, the researchers believe that it may help to identify people with higher dementia risk for early intervention.

Yume Imahori is the leading author and the study was led by senior lecturer Dr Chengxuan Qiu. The data was derived from the Swedish National study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen (SNAC-K).

Read the full article on KI’s website.