• Posted April 9, 2025

Stroke, Dementia, Depression Share Many Risk Factors

Brain diseases like stroke, dementia and depression share common risk factors, and changing any can lower a person’s risk of all three conditions, a new study says.

Addressing factors as varied as blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, physical activity, sleep, stress, alcohol consumption and smoking can significantly reduce risk of the three age-related brain diseases, researchers reported in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

“Our study identified 17 modifiable risk factors shared between stroke, dementia, and/or late-life depression, emphasizing that there are many different steps individuals can take to lower their risks for these age-related brain diseases,” senior researcher Dr. Sanjula Singh, principal investigator at the Brain Care Labs at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, said in a news release.

At least 60% of strokes, 40% of dementia cases, and 35% of late-life depression diagnoses are linked to lifestyle-related risk factors, researchers said in background notes.

“Dementia, stroke, and late-life depression are connected and intertwined, so if you develop one of them, there's a substantial chance you may develop another one in the future,” said lead researcher Dr. Jasper Senff, a postdoctoral fellow at the MGH Brain Care Labs.

To hone in on what makes a difference, researchers pooled data from 59 previous studies of risk factors related to brain health.

From these studies, researchers identified risk factors shared by at least two of the three conditions. They also estimated the relative impact of each factor on people’s chances of early death or declining quality of life.

Of the 17 risk factors identified, high blood pressure and severe kidney disease had the biggest impact on the risk of stroke, dementia and late-life depression, researchers found.

Other important risk factors included obesity, blood sugar, cholesterol, alcohol use, diet, hearing loss, pain, physical activity, purpose in life, sleep, smoking, social engagement and stress.

Researchers also looked at engagement in leisure activity such as doing puzzles that was also associated with a lower risk of disease.

“Because they share these overlapping risk factors, preventive efforts could lead to a reduction in the incidence of more than one of these diseases, which provides an opportunity to simultaneously reduce the burden of age-related brain diseases,” Senff said.

Researchers will use these results to further hone a Brain Care Score they’ve developed to measure efforts to protect brain health.

“Healthcare is increasingly complex, but these findings remind us that preventing disease can be very simple. Why? Because many of the most common diseases share the same risk factors,” Dr. Jonathan Rosand, chair of neurology at MGH, said in a news release.

More information

Harvard Medical School has more on the Brain Care Score.

SOURCE: Mass General Brigham, news release, April 3, 2025