Researchers from University College London (UCL) have revealed that common risk factors for dementia may have a greater effect among people of certain ethnicities.
The findings from the study help to explain previous research that show evidence of ethnic minority groups being more likely to develop dementia at an earlier age.
In the UK alone, it is estimated that over 25,000 people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities are living with dementia, according to the Race Equality Foundation.
The new study, funded by the Alzheimer’s Society, analysed just under one million adults in England’s health records from 1997 to 2018.
When studying the relationship between risk factors and dementia in health data, the researchers discovered that risk factors, including high blood pressure, had a significant impact on dementia risk for South Asian and Black people in comparison to White people.
Results showed that 12.6% of the participants developed dementia, 16% of whom were White, 8.6% were South Asian, 12.1% were Black and 9.7% were from other minority ethnic groups.
The team also found that high blood pressure had a bigger impact on Black people’s (1.57x) and South Asian people’s (1.18x) dementia risk in comparison to White people.
Additionally, risk factors including high blood pressure, obesity, low HDL cholesterol and sleep disorders had a greater effect on South Asian people than on White people.
David Thomas, head of policy, Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “It’s a shocking truth that people from ethnic minorities face an increased risk of a number of health conditions.”
Understanding this greater effect “would open up an enormous opportunity to reduce the personal and societal impact of this heartbreaking condition on people from Black and South Asian communities,’’ he added.
Alzheimer’s Research UK continues to call for a national cross-government prevention strategy to tackle these health inequalities.
These health inequalities “[need] proper funding and must encourage better joint working across all government departments to truly break the link between an individual’s background and their prospects for a healthy life, including dementia risk,” said Thomas.