3d • General discussion
High Blood Pressure Doesn't Just Risk Dementia. It Causes It.
I'm a dementia doctor.
And I check my blood pressure regularly.
Not because I'm worried about a heart attack.
Because new genetic evidence shows high blood pressure directly causes dementia.
Not just "associated with." Causes.
A massive study from Denmark and the UK analyzed genetic data to separate correlation from causation.
High blood pressure and obesity don't just increase dementia risk. They trigger it.
This changes everything about how I think about prevention.
For years, we told patients: control your blood pressure to reduce dementia risk.
Now we know: control your blood pressure because it's causing brain damage.
Same advice. Different urgency.
Here's what I do personally:
I check my blood pressure at home weekly. Target: under 120/80.
I track my weight daily. Not for vanity. For my brain.
I adjusted my diet years ago when my fasting insulin started creeping up. Insulin resistance is another direct cause.
I exercise 6 days a week. Zone 2 cardio. Resistance training. Not negotiable.
I'm 42. I've diagnosed over 1,000 cases of dementia.
I know what's coming if I don't intervene now.
The beautiful thing about this research: these are fixable problems.
You can't change your genes. You can't reverse your age.
But you can control your blood pressure. You can manage your weight. You can improve your metabolic health.
These aren't risk factors anymore. They're causes.
That means they're also solutions.
Start now. Not when symptoms appear.
By then, the damage is done.
⁉️ When was the last time you checked your blood pressure at home?
Citations: Nordestgaard et al.High body mass index as a causal risk factor for vascular-related dementia: evidence from Mendelian randomization analyses.The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism 2026.
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High Blood Pressure Doesn't Just Risk Dementia. It Causes It.
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