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Patterns of modifiable lifestyle, behavioural and health-related risk factors and their associations with incident dementia in UK Biobank
Uejima, Y.; Calvin, C. M.; Kuzma, E.; Littlejohns, T. J.. medRxiv (preprint), 2026-09-25
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Over a median follow-up of 13 years, 5,304 participants developed dementia. Six risk factor classes were identified. Compared to participants with zero or one risk factor, all classes were associated with dementia risk: 'multiple risk factors' (hazard ratio [HR] 2.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.11-2.68), 'hearing loss and unhealthy lifestyle' (HR=1.37, 95% CI 1.22-1.55), 'sleep and psychosocial factors' (HR=1.34, 95% CI 1.20-1.49), 'poor cardiometabolic health' (HR=1.32, 95% CI 1.19-1.46), 'heavy drinking and unhealthy lifestyle' (HR=1.20, 95% CI 1.07-1.35), and 'vitamin D deficiency, sedentary and psychosocial factors' (HR=1.18, 95% CI 1.03-1.35). We identified risk factor patterns that were differentially associated with dementia risk. These findings suggest that accounting for the co-occurrence of risk factors might be an effective approach for risk stratification and developing effective dementia prevention strategies.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Uejima, Y., Calvin, C. M., Kuzma, E., & Littlejohns, T. J. (2026). Patterns of modifiable lifestyle, behavioural and health-related risk factors and their associations with incident dementia in UK Biobank. medRxiv (preprint). https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.24.26363838
Vancouver
Uejima Y, Calvin CM, Kuzma E, Littlejohns TJ. Patterns of modifiable lifestyle, behavioural and health-related risk factors and their associations with incident dementia in UK Biobank. medRxiv (preprint). 2026. doi:10.64898/2026.09.24.26363838.
BibTeX
@article{uejima2026-bf9e6ff5,
author = {Uejima, Y. and Calvin, C. M. and Kuzma, E. and Littlejohns, T. J.},
title = {{Patterns of modifiable lifestyle, behavioural and health-related risk factors and their associations with incident dementia in UK Biobank}},
journal = {medRxiv (preprint)},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.24.26363838},
url = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.09.24.26363838}
}
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Key findings
- Over a median follow-up of 13 years, 5,304 participants developed dementia.
- Compared to participants with zero or one risk factor, all classes were associated with dementia risk: 'multiple risk factors' (hazard ratio [HR] 2.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.11-2.68), 'hearing loss and unhealthy lifestyle' (HR=1.37, 95% CI 1.22-1.55), 'sleep and psychosocial factors' (HR=1.
- We identified risk factor patterns that were differentially associated with dementia risk.
- These findings suggest that accounting for the co-occurrence of risk factors might be an effective approach for risk stratification and developing effective dementia prevention strategies.
Why it matters
In UK Biobank data, certain patterns of lifestyle and health risk factors were linked to higher dementia risk, with the highest risk in people who had multiple risk factors at once. This suggests that addressing combinations of risk factors may help with prevention strategies, but it is an observational study and does not prove that changing these factors prevents dementia.
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Study details
- Participants151,832
- Effect sizeHR=1.37; HR=1.34; HR=1.32
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 32 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for study design and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on impact for its field and year, so that was left out: it earned 30 of the 94 points we could judge it on, which is 32 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (medRxiv (preprint)) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 4 / 4 | 151,832 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Thomas J. Littlejohns: h-index 33 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of Oxford: institution h-index 2,205 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 30 / 94 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 30 of the 94 points we could judge it on is 32 out of 100. |
| Total | 32 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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