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If this happened when you were a child, it can have an impact on your brain

Sara LondonMay 15, 2021 5-7 minutes

We all know that certain events in childhood, whether they’re physical or emotional, can have lasting effects on one’s life. But the latest from scientists is that your childhood heart health can determine your predisposition to accelerated cognitive decline as an adult.

The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, the most comprehensive longitudinal study on heart health conducted in Finland, determined that high systolic blood pressure (the number on the top of the reading), and high LDL cholesterol in childhood were associated with issues learning and lower visual information processing.

Additionally, being obese through childhood and into adulthood will cause one to generally display lower processing speeds, and decreased ability to maintain attention.

Researchers conducted the study by following participants for 31 years, starting when participants were anywhere from three to 18. The study began with 3,600 girls and boys of varying weights and levels of health participating in 1980.

In 2011, during a follow-up with researchers, around 2,000 of those initial participants, who were now anywhere from 34 to 49 years old, took a test in what researchers called “computerized cognitive function,” or simply “thinking skills.”

Results from the data collection of these participants showed that both LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol, BMI, and other weight or heart-related factors ultimately contributed to one’s ability to score highly on this thinking skills test. The longer the participant had suffered from obesity, the worse their results were.

In particular, cholesterol levels, BMI, and systolic blood pressure appeared to be directly linked to “poorer memory and associative learning, worse visual processing, decreased attention span, slower reaction time and slower movement.” Those who had all three cardiovascular and weight issues, the study says, “were almost seven years older in their memory and learning level as those with no risk factors.

Additionally, in terms of visual processing, such as tying their shoes or reading at a faster pace, participants scored among those 20 years older than their stated age. That means that an obese 49-year-old with hypertension and high cholesterol has the equivalent processing speed of someone who’s almost 70.

The science here isn’t particularly difficult to understand – one’s heart pumps blood through the body, transporting with it white blood cells, red blood cells, and with those red blood cells, lots of oxygen.

Arteries tightly packed with plague, a heart that’s exerting too much, or even too much extra internal fat crowding your organs are all things that slow down the distribution of oxygen in your body, causing an extremely mild form of hypoxia, and consequently, decreased higher cognitive processing abilities.

The prevalence of childhood obesity

The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare reports that according to the FinHealth 2017, a sort of health census for the country of Finland, “26% of men and 28% of women were obese.” America’s number are almost double that amount as of 2020, when 42.4% of American adults were considered obese. Since just 2008, obesity rates have skyrocketed up 26%.

While adult obesity is an ever-present issue, childhood obesity, the Young Finn Study states, is where we need to focus the most of our attention in preventing long-term cognitive impairments.

The CDC reports that sadly, “one in five youths had high total cholesterol, low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, or high non-HDL cholesterol.” In total, 13% of children have low HDL cholesterol, which could result in a greater risk of heart disease later in life.

This trend unfortunately is set in one’s youth, and the CDC continues that “obese children are more likely to become obese adults and suffer lifelong physical and mental health problems.” There are as many as 93 million adults over the age of 20 have high total cholesterol levels, many of which have been obese for their entire lives.

How to help prevent obesity

While brain function might be decreased by heart issues and weight issues, there’s no science indicating that your cognitive abilities are forever lost after a few too many cheeseburgers. Especially among children, if obesity is tackled responsibly and swiftly, the prognosis is good.

WebMD provides some tips for managing childhood obesity. In addition to healthy eating and exercise, you may not know that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all children should be screened once for high cholesterol levels between the ages of 9 and 11, and then one more time between the ages of 17 and 21.

High cholesterol has no symptoms, and it’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to heart health. Children with a family history of high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, high blood pressure, or high BMI should also be more regularly screened, as they have a higher predisposition to premature heart disease.

As for adults, self-care for heart health is a bit simpler: in addition to a healthy lifestyle, regular visits to the doctor and perhaps a blood pressure cuff of your own would be helpful to prevent heart disease, and consequently, cognitive decline.

If you’re considering going on a statin for heart issues, remember to consult your doctor about the right one, because some statins that cross the blood-brain barrier are known to cause the exact brain fog you’re looking to get rid of.