BORDEAUX, France, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- People who consider their health to be poor or fair may be significantly more likely to develop dementia, researchers in France say.
Dr. Christophe Tzourio of the University of Bordeaux 2 in France said at the start of the study, 8,169 people age 65 years or older were asked to rate their health. They were tracked for nearly seven years and 618 people developed dementia, Tzourio, the study author, said.
The study, published in the journal Neurology, found the risk of dementia was 70 percent higher in people who rated their health as poor and 34 percent higher in people who rated their health as fair compared with those who rated their health as good.
The study found the association between people's health ratings and developing dementia was even stronger for those who did not have any memory problems or other issues with thinking skills.
In addition, those who rated their health as poor were nearly twice as likely to develop dementia as those who rated their health as good, Tzourio said.
"We know that having a large social network and social activities are associated with a decreased risk of dementia," Tzourio said in a statement.
"Therefore, it's possible that rating one's health as poor might be associated with behaviors that limit social interaction and in turn accelerate the dementia process."
