Diabetes and alcohol ‘among most harmful controllable dementia risk factors’

Some 161 risk factors for dementia were examined in the new study. Picture: iStock

Diabetes, traffic-related air pollution and alcohol intake are among the most harmful controllable risk factors for dementia, a study suggests.

The researchers had previously identified a weak spot in the brain which is a specific area that develops later during adolescence, and also shows earlier degeneration in old age.