Lowering bad cholesterol LDL reduces dementia risk by up to 28%
Apr 11, 2025
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A research team led by Professor Kim Ye-rim of the Department of Neurology at Gangdong Sacred Heart Hospital at Hallym University analyzed patient data from 11 university hospitals in Korea using a common data model, and found that people with LDL cholesterol levels below 70mg/dL have a 26% lower risk of developing dementia and 28% lower risk of Alzheimer's dementia than those with LDL cholesterol levels above 130mg/dL.
Early studies on LDL cholesterol and brain function raised concerns that very low cholesterol levels were related to cognitive decline, but the study, published by a research team led by professors Kim Ye-rim and Lee Min-woo (Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital), found that LDL-C levels, a bad cholesterol, are associated with reduced dementia rates, and cholesterol management is an important treatment for preventing dementia. This is significant in that it has presented new criteria for clinical treatment of dementia.
In addition, the study revealed that taking 'statin', a cholesterol-lowering drug, reduces the risk of developing dementia by 13% if the LDL level is less than 70 mg/dL. This suggests that it is significant for the elderly or dementia risk group to take statins steadily.
In this regard, Dr. Shaheen Lakhan, a neurologist in Miami, Florida, wrote in Medscape, a medical media outlet, that "Until now, it has been difficult for the medical community to say for sure what level of cholesterol is 'safe' or beneficial to the brain."This study was evaluated as a very useful study that presented specific cholesterol standards (<70 mg/dL) to reduce the risk of dementia." In addition, "The clinic provides a strong basis for continuing statins for patients at risk of dementia, such as the elderly."
Recently, the prestigious international journal The Lancet (2024) added high LDL-C levels as new factors to items such as lack of education, hearing loss, and smoking, which are existing dementia risk factors. This study is a study that supports the presentation of such a Lancet and is evaluated to have shown consistent results with robust and diverse data analysis methods using large sample sizes.
The study was recently published in the international journal Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry published by the world's prestigious British Medical Journal Group, and has been featured in more than 100 major news outlets around the world, including Herald, Tribune, The Guardian, and YAHOO News, drawing international attention.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
