Double the risk
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From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Nicholas Garlow with HHS HealthBeat.
A study indicates that the risk factors for stroke may also lead to cognitive problems. High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a risk factor for stroke. And a study that followed 30,000 people found hypertension is also a risk factor for cognitive impairment, affecting memory, speech, language and problem solving.
Dr. Walter Koroshetz is the deputy director of the NIH institute. He says it should motivate people to live healthier.
"We can control our blood pressure; we can control our weight; we can get exercise; and those things usually people associate with better cardiac health and preventing heart attacks. The message here is that it actually promotes brain health." (12 seconds)
The study in the journal Neurology was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
Learn more at hhs.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Nicholas Garlow.