Dementia may be found through hand-grip and walking speed

Researchers have found that slow walkers, in middle ages of life, had 1.5 times more chances to develop dementia as compared to fast walkers. They have also found that people with stronger grip had 42% lower chances of developing stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA).

Researchers will present this research at American Academy of Neurology’s (AAN’s) 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans, April 21 to April 28, 2012.

From SayPeople,

Researchers have also found that slower walking speed was also linked with decreased total cerebral brain volume and poorer performance on memory, language and decision-making tests. Moreover, firm hand grip strength was linked with increased total cerebral brain volume as well as better performance on cognitive tests asking people to identify similarities among objects.

“Further research is needed to understand why this is happening and whether preclinical disease could cause slow walking and decreased strength.” Erica C. Camargo, MD, MSc, PhD, with Boston Medical Center.

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