A Connection Between Diabetes, Oral Health and Dementia Highlights the Importance of Dental Care

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A new study shows “having both diabetes and tooth loss contributes to worse cognitive function and faster cognitive decline in older adults,” shares NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing.

The study was published in the Journal of Dental Research, in an issue focused on aging and oral health. This research shows how important good dental health and diabetes management are for reducing the likelihood of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Bei Wu, vice dean for research at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing and co-director of the NYU Aging Incubator, and her colleagues analyzed 9,948 older adults across 12 years of data (from 2006 to 2018) from the University of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study.

Find out more about this research from NYU.

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