Alcohol consumption from midlife and risk of disabling dementia in a large population‐based cohort study in Japan

Abstract

AbstractObjectivesThe association between alcohol consumption and dementia in Japanese is poorly understood, and use of single‐point alcohol assessment may cause measurement error. We explored this association in Japanese using repeated alcohol assessments.MethodsParticipants in the Japan Public Health Center‐based Prospective Study (JPHC Study) since 1990 and who were alive in 2006 were followed from 2006 until 2016 for dementia ascertainment. Disabling dementia was identified through long‐term care insurance records. Alcohol consumption was assessed at the 5‐year questionnaire survey (1995–1999) and drinking patterns were assessed on repeated follow‐up (2000–2003). We performed Cox proportional hazards models with age as the time‐scale with adjustment for various lifestyle factors and medical history using light consumption (<75 g ethanol/week, hereinafter “g”) as reference. Analysis considering death as a competing risk was also conducted.ResultsAmong 42,870 participants aged 54–84 years, 4802 cases of disabling dementia were newly diagnosed. Average years from alcohol assessment until dementia incidence was 14.9 years. Non‐drinkers and regular drinkers with ≥450 g at 5 years had adjusted HRs (95% CI) of 1.29 (1.12–1.47) and 1.34 (1.12–1.60). Patterns of long‐term abstinence, former drinking, and regular heavy weekly consumption of ≥450 g showed increased adjusted HRs of 1.61 (1.28–2.03), 2.54 (1.93–3.35), and 1.96 (1.49–2.59), respectively. Competing risk analysis yielded similar results.ConclusionsIn Japanese, non‐drinking and regular weekly consumption of ≥450 g from midlife were associated with high risk of disabling dementia compared with light drinking.