Vision tests might spot dementia risk years before symptoms
Turns out, your eyes could help flag dementia risk more than a decade in advance.
New studies from the UK and Australia found that people with poorer vision are more likely to develop dementia later on.
The Lancet's 2024 report even highlighted that vision loss in older adults makes up up to 2.2% of all dementia cases.
Why this matters
Australian researchers saw that people whose eyesight got worse also tended to score lower on thinking tests, and that reduced social interaction may partly explain this link.
Over in the UK, slower visual processing speeds were linked to higher dementia risk—though it's not a perfect predictor yet.
Experts now suggest adding vision checks to routine dementia screenings and making eye care more accessible, since treating vision problems could help lower some risks down the line.