Diet, Obesity, and Physical Inactivity: Linking Diabetes and Dementia

Abstract Obesity is a risk factor for diabetes, which is recognized to be associated with neurocognitive dysfunction and the risk for the development of dementia. However, obesity as well as other so-called “modifiable risk factors” such as diet and physical activity also appear to be associated with cognitive dysfunction. Because these factors often coexist, the pathway from metabolic dysfunction to cognitive impairment likely results from a complex multifactorial interaction. In this chapter, we review the evidence linking diet, obesity, and physical inactivity with neurocognitive impairment, underscoring evidence that effects may be independent from, or interact with, metabolic dysfunction. We conclude that the existing literature does not adequately consider the complexity of these interacting factors and that future work is called for to disambiguate the independent and interacting causes supporting the link between diabetes and dementia.