Walking problems linked most strongly to dementia at ages 65–75
At age 65, the estimated rate of developing dementia was 3.13 times as high for walking scores of 11 versus 12.
Our read
Biomarkers- Studied:
- Cohort study of 4,822 older Korean adults, median 6.2 years (Dose-response)
- What changed:
- At 65, dementia rates were 3.13 times as high for walking scores of 11 versus 12; the link weakened with age
- The catch:
- Only 4,822 of 6,818 eligible participants were included, potentially biasing the age-specific association
Editor of record: Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
The 4,822 adults in the Korean Longitudinal Study on Cognitive Aging and Dementia averaged 69.6 years old; 2,719 were women. This prospective cohort study assessed walking and balance and followed participants for a median of 6.2 years. During follow-up, 251 developed dementia and 458 died.
The association did not follow a straight line: dementia risk rose steeply as walking scores fell from the maximum of 12. The link weakened with age. For scores of 11 versus 12, hazard ratios—a measure of the relative rate of developing dementia—were 3.13 at age 65, 1.36 at 75 and 0.59 at 85. At 75, the range of likely values included no difference. The authors concluded that the association was strongest at ages 65–75 and not evident beyond approximately 80.
Why it matters
For dementia screening in later life, the authors suggest walking assessments may be most informative in younger older adults.
Caveats
Other differences between people with better and worse walking scores could have contributed to their dementia risk. The cohort was ethnically homogeneous, limiting how well the findings may apply to other populations.
The paper
Age-Dependent Nonlinear Association Between Gait Impairment and Incident Dementia
Seoul National University College of Natural Sciences
Neurology, Nov 9, 2026
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