Can Bone Density Impact Dementia Risk? A New Study Says Yes

When it comes to health in the United States, you may say that bone density isn't one of our strengths. In 2010, approximately 10 million Americans aged 50 and over had osteoporosis, according to the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. Over 43 million more had low bone mass. 

Both dementia and osteoporosis patients are at an increased risk of fracture, but dementia patients also have a higher risk of falling (and dire consequences as a result of that fall). Case in point: The six-month mortality rate in end-stage dementia patients1 that sustain a hip fracture is 55%, compared to 12% in cognitively healthy individuals. 

Over 3,500 participants from the Rotterdam Study that did not have dementia between 2002 and 2005 were given a bone mineral density (BMD) test at the femoral neck, lumbar spine, and total body and a trabecular bone score test up until January 2020. 

Approximately 19% of the participants developed dementia during the follow-up period. Participants with lower BMD at the femoral neck were 12% more likely to develop dementia and 14% more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. Within the first 10 years following the baseline assessment, scientists found that participants in the lowest tertile of bone mineral density (specifically, those with the lowest femoral neck BMD, total body BMD, and trabecular bone scores) were most likely to develop dementia. 

While we can't confirm that vitamin D is entirely responsible for preventing osteoporosis and dementia, it's clear that increasing your daily vitamin D intake (and most importantly, achieving and maintaining sufficiency) can help protect both your bones and brain from disease down the road.