Neurotic Personalities Increase Alzheimer's Risk With Age

Women who frequently stress out or cope poorly with problems may be at a greater risk of Alzheimer's disease later in life, according to recent findings published in the journal Neurology.

Research carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, followed about 800 women for 40 years. Those who had experienced high levels of stress over long periods were asked to undergo memory tests. At the follow-up period in 2006, 40 years later, about one fifth of the women had developed dementia.

"We could see that the women who developed Alzheimer disease had more often been identified in the personality test 40 years earlier as having neurotic tendencies. We found a clear statistical correlation for the women who had at the same time been subject to a long period of stress," said researcher Lena Johansson of Sahlgrenska Academy in Gothenburg, in a news release.

For those with a tendency toward neuroticism--or individuals who are more prone to experience harsh mood swings--they also deal with incredible difficulty managing stress.

"We know that many factors influence the risk of developing dementia. Our personality may determine behavior, lifestyle and how we react to stress, and in this way affect the risk of developing Alzheimer disease," Johansson added.

Further analysis also revealed that those prone to worry more when under stress were at the highest risk of this health issue.

"Some studies have shown that long periods of stress can increase the risk of Alzheimer disease, and our main hypothesis is that it is the stress itself that is harmful. A person with neurotic tendencies is more sensitive to stress than other people," concluded Johansson.