Health
Dementia report reveals 'shocking' signs at age 60 that you'll develop the disease by age 80
The onset of dementia can come as a shock, but various signs could predict the condition as long as 20 years before symptoms.
A new study published by the RAND Corporation in California identified several major predictors occurring around age 60 that are likely to lead to cognitive impairment and dementia in individuals by age 80.
Researchers evaluated 181 potential risk factors, including demographics, socioeconomic status, lifestyle and health behaviors, health history, psycho-social factors and more.
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Below are some of the strongest predictors at age 60 that indicate a higher chance of developing cognitive impairment and dementia, according to the report.
See the list of 14 predictors.
RAND researchers uncovered several surprising predictors of dementia risk, like never drinking and never working. (iStock)
1. Poor physical health
2. History of stroke
3. Genetics
4. Being born in the Southern United States
5. Not having private health insurance at age 60
6. Never working or only working for a few years
7. History of diabetes
8. Having a body mass index of 35 or more
9. Never drinking alcohol or drinking excessively
10. Never exercising
11. Scoring low on physical tests
12. Being less conscientious
13. Low engagement in hobbies
14. Low cognitive function and engagement
Parental health, family size, marital history and demographics were the weakest predictors, according to the research.
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In an interview with Fox News Digital, study co-author Peter Hudomiet, a RAND economist in California, shared details of the study, which worked with a large dataset and followed individuals “for decades.”
Parental health, family size, marital history and demographics were the weakest predictors, according to the research. (iStock)
“Overall, we found that risk factors had a similar effect in the short and long term, which reassured us that the findings from prior literature may hold in the long term,” he said.
“Nevertheless, we also had quite a few surprising findings.”
Digging into dementia drivers
The researcher said he was surprised to find that those who never exercised had a “substantially higher chance” of developing dementia than those who lightly exercised at least a few times per month.
“Exercising even more often (weekly or daily) had some additional benefits, but not that much,” he noted.
“In other words, the main risk factor for dementia was never exercising.”
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“These behavioral factors were more important predictors of dementia than having the right genes,” Hudomiet added.
While having a body mass index (BMI) over 30 at age 60 was a weak predictor of dementia, a BMI over 35 was a “powerful predictor.”
The risk of dementia is “about half as much among those who regularly exercise compared to those who never do,” said the researcher (not pictured). (iStock)
Never participating in cognitive activities offered a much higher risk of developing dementia compared to sometimes participating, as well as only having zero to 11 years of education compared to having high school or advanced degrees, said Hudomiet.
Another unexpected finding was the substantially higher dementia risk faced by Americans born in the Southeastern U.S. compared to the rest of the country.
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“This differential remained strong even when our statistical models accounted for differences in income, health, and other differences between regions,” the researcher noted.
“It is possible that the quality of education (which we could not measure in our data) was lower in the Southeastern part of the U.S., especially in the older cohorts we analyzed.”
“Less than 1% of health care dollars go toward educating the public on positive health care strategies,” according to a gerontologist. (iStock)
People not covered by a private health insurance plan at age 60 had an 11% higher chance of developing dementia than those who had coverage, Hudomiet added.
That’s “partly because private health insurance helps individuals remain healthy longer,” he suggested.
“The choices you make now will determine how you will live later.”
The study results suggested that “maintaining good physical and mental health is beneficial not just to staying in shape, but also to staying sharp and delaying cognitive decline,” Hudomiet told Fox News Digital.
DEMENTIA HAS 2 SHOCKING NEW RISK FACTORS, STUDY FINDS, WITH TOTAL OF 14 NOW ON LIST
Gerontologist Dr. Macie P. Smith in South Carolina, who was not involved in the study, also reacted to the findings in a separate interview with Fox News Digital, saying the researchers are “spot on.”
“Having this researched information presented … brings about a heightened sense of responsibility to everyone who claims to be in the fight to end Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD),” she wrote in an email response.
A person’s genetics are less of a risk factor than certain habits and behaviors such as exercise, a researcher noted. (iStock)
Smith said it is “pretty shocking” that never drinking alcohol increases dementia risk.
“This stands out to me because drinking alcohol excessively increases one’s risk significantly of brain deterioration and can lead to alcohol-induced dementia,” she said.
The expert suggested that self-reported data could have led to this finding — or red wine could have been factored in, as it’s been found to “contain brain-enhancing nutrients, such as resveratrol.”
Ways to reduce the risk
While cognitive decline is sometimes impossible to prevent, Hudomiet mentioned that some risk factors can be reduced through lifestyle changes.
These include exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy body weight, getting proper nutrition and engaging in challenging cognitive activities.
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“Health care providers and the government should consider promoting healthy behaviors in the adult population and strengthening individuals’ access to quality health care, which may decrease the prevalence of dementia and the burden of the disease in the future,” Hudomiet recommended.
“Understanding that what’s good for the heart is good for the brain and adopting healthy lifestyle practices puts people in control of their brain fate,” one expert said. (iStock)
Smith added that reducing dementia risk “doesn’t begin or end with medication.”
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For those who are middle-aged, paying attention to these early predictors is a “matter of life and death,” she stated.
“It is incumbent on everyone with a brain to take heed of the warning signs that your body gives you,” she said. “Your body always reminds you about what your brain sometimes ignores.”
“You have the power to take control over what your life looks like down the road,” she went on.
“The choices you make now will determine how you will live later.”
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In a dramatic turn of events that’s captured the attention of animal lovers worldwide, Punch — the young macaque at a zoo in Japan famous for his inseparable bond with a stuffed orangutan toy — has reached a major milestone in his journey toward social integration.
On Thursday, visitors and staff at the Ichikawa Zoological and Botanical Garden witnessed a breakthrough: Punch was seen cuddling with and hitching a ride on the back of a fellow macaque.
Punch’s story began with hardship. He was abandoned by his mother shortly after his birth in July 2025 — and to ensure his survival, zookeepers stepped in to hand-rear the primate.
On Jan. 19, 2026, the zoo officially began the process of reintegrating Punch into the “monkey mountain” enclosure.
The transition was initially fraught with tension.
Punch’s story began with hardship when he was abandoned by his mother shortly after he was born. To help him, zookeepers gave him a stuffed toy that he began dragging around everywhere he went. (David Mareuil/Anadolu via Getty Images)
As a hand-reared infant, Punch was bullied and ignored by the established group of monkeys.
He was often seen huddled alone with his orange plush companion while the rest of the troop interacted.
BABY MONKEY CARRIES FAITHFUL STUFFED COMPANION EVERYWHERE HE GOES, DRAWING CROWDS AT ZOO
In an official statement released Feb. 27, the Ichikawa Zoological and Botanical Garden detailed the meticulous care behind this process.
Previous viral videos showed Punch bullied by the rest of the troop, running to his plushy toy for comfort. (David Mareuil/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“From an animal welfare perspective, our primary goal is to reintegrate Punch with the troop,” the zoo said.
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The strategy involved nursing Punch within the enclosure, so the troop could recognize him as one of their own, and pairing him with a gentle young female macaque prior to his full release to build his confidence.
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The latest footage, captured by X user @tate_gf, suggested the zoo’s patience is paying off.
The video shows Punch seeking physical contact not from his toy, but from another monkey — eventually climbing onto its back for a vital social behavior for young macaques: the “piggyback ride.”
The zoo’s strategy appears to be paying off: Punch, shown at far left, was recently seen riding on the back of a fellow macaque. (David Mareuil/Anadolu via Getty Images)
While Punch still carries his stuffed toy for comfort during moments of perceived danger, the zoo remains optimistic about his progress.
The organization cited the successful 2009 case of Otome, another hand-reared macaque who eventually outgrew her stuffed toy, successfully integrated — and went on to raise four offspring of her own.
The zoo has had crowds coming to see Punch, with hundreds of people lining up to get inside to see the young star, according to reports.
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“I’m hoping Punch has a good life like everybody else does, and think he’s a cute little guy,” one person commented online.
“Such a precious baby,” another person wrote.
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This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Artificial intelligence has been touted as a boon to healthcare, but a new study has revealed its potential shortcomings when it comes to giving medical advice.
In January, OpenAI launched ChatGPT Health, the medical-focused version of the popular chatbot tool.
The company introduced the tool as “a dedicated experience that securely brings your health information and ChatGPT’s intelligence together, to help you feel more informed, prepared and confident navigating your health.”
But researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found that the tool failed to recommend emergency care for a “significant number” of serious medical cases.
The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine on Feb. 23, aimed to explore how ChatGPT Health — which is reported to have about 40 million users daily — handles situations where people are asking whether to seek emergency care.
Artificial intelligence has been touted as a boon to healthcare, but a new study has revealed its potential shortcomings when it comes to giving medical advice. (iStock)
“Right now, no independent body evaluates these products before they reach the public,” lead author Ashwin Ramaswamy, M.D., instructor of urology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, told Fox News Digital.
“We wouldn’t accept that for a medication or a medical device, and we shouldn’t accept it for a product that tens of millions of people are using to make health decisions.”
Emergency scenarios
The team created 60 clinical scenarios across 21 medical specialties, ranging from minor conditions to true medical emergencies.
Three independent physicians then assigned an appropriate level of urgency for each case, based on published clinical practice guidelines in 56 medical societies.
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The researchers conducted 960 interactions with ChatGPT Health to see how the tool responded, taking into account gender, race, barriers to care and “social dynamics.”
While “clear-cut emergencies” — such as stroke or severe allergy — were generally handled well, the researchers found that the tool “under-triaged” many urgent medical issues.
The team created 60 clinical scenarios across 21 medical specialties, ranging from minor conditions to true medical emergencies. (iStock)
For example, in one asthma scenario, the system acknowledged that the patient was showing early signs of respiratory failure — but still recommended waiting instead of seeking emergency care.
“ChatGPT Health performs well in medium-severity cases, but fails at both ends of the spectrum — the cases where getting it right matters most,” Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital. “It under-triaged over half of genuine emergencies and over-triaged roughly two-thirds of mild cases that clinical guidelines say should be managed at home.”
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Under-triage can be life-threatening, the doctor noted, while over-triage can overwhelm emergency departments and delay care for those in real need.
Researchers also identified inconsistencies in suicide risk alerts. In some cases, it directed users to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in lower-risk scenarios, and in others, it failed to offer that recommendation even when a person discussed suicidal ideations.
“ChatGPT Health performs well in medium-severity cases, but fails at both ends of the spectrum.”
“The suicide guardrail failure was the most alarming,” study co-author Girish N. Nadkarni, M.D., chief AI officer of the Mount Sinai Health System, told Fox News Digital.
ChatGPT Health is designed to show a crisis intervention banner when someone describes thoughts of self-harm, the researcher noted.
OpenAI launched ChatGPT Health, the medical-focused version of the popular chatbot tool, in January 2026. (Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“We tested it with a 27-year-old patient who said he’d been thinking about taking a lot of pills,” Nadkarni said. “When he described his symptoms alone, the banner appeared 100% of the time. Then we added normal lab results — same patient, same words, same severity — and the banner vanished.”
“A safety feature that works perfectly in one context and completely fails in a nearly identical context … is a fundamental safety problem.”
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The researchers were also surprised by the social influence aspect.
“When a family member in the scenario said ‘it’s nothing serious’ — which happens all the time in real life — the system became nearly 12 times more likely to downplay the patient’s symptoms,” Nadkarni said. “Everyone has a spouse or parent who tells them they’re overreacting. The AI shouldn’t be agreeing with them during a potential emergency.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Open AI, creator of ChatGPT, requesting comment.
Physicians react
Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, called the new study “important.”
“It underlines the principle that while large language models can triage clear-cut emergencies, they have much more trouble with nuanced situations,” Siegel, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
ChatGPT and other LLMs can be helpful tools, a doctor said, but they “should not be used to give medical direction.” (iStock)
“This is where doctors and clinical judgment come in — knowing the nuances of a patient’s history and how they report symptoms and their approach to health.”
ChatGPT and other LLMs can be helpful tools, Siegel said, but they “should not be used to give medical direction.”
“Machine learning and continued input of data can help, but will never compensate for the essential problem – human judgment is needed to decide whether something is a true emergency or not.”
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Dr. Harvey Castro, an emergency physician and AI expert in Texas, echoed the importance of the study, calling it “exactly the kind of independent safety evaluation we need.”
“Innovation moves fast. Oversight has to move just as fast,” Castro, who also did not work on the study, told Fox News Digital. “In healthcare, the most dangerous mistakes happen at the extremes, when something looks mild but is actually catastrophic. That’s where clinical judgment matters most, and where AI must be stress-tested.”
Study limitations
The researchers acknowledged some potential limitations in the study design.
“We used physician-written clinical scenarios rather than real patient conversations, and we tested at a single point in time — these systems update frequently, so performance may change,” Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital.
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Additionally, most of the missed emergencies happened in situations where the danger depended on how the condition was changing over time. It’s not clear whether the same problem would happen with acute medical emergencies.
Because the system had to choose just one fixed urgency category, the test may not reflect the more nuanced advice it might give in a back-and-forth conversation, the researchers noted.
ChatGPT Health is designed to show a crisis intervention banner when someone describes thoughts of self-harm. (iStock)
Also, the study wasn’t large enough to confidently detect small differences in how recommendations might vary by race or gender.
“We need continuous auditing, not one-time studies,” Castro noted. “These systems update frequently, so evaluation must be ongoing.”
‘Don’t wait’
The researchers emphasized the importance of seeking immediate care for serious issues.
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“If something feels seriously wrong — chest pain, difficulty breathing, a severe allergic reaction, thoughts of self-harm — go to the emergency department or call 988,” Ramaswamy advised. “Don’t wait for an AI to tell you it’s OK.”
The researchers noted that they support the use of AI to improve healthcare access, and that they didn’t conduct the study to “tear down the technology.”
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“These tools can be genuinely useful for the right things — understanding a diagnosis you’ve already received, looking up what your medications do and their side effects, or getting answers to questions that didn’t get fully addressed in a short doctor’s visit,” Ramaswamy said.
“That’s a very different use case from deciding whether you need emergency care. Treat them as a complement to your doctor, not a replacement.”
“This study doesn’t mean we abandon AI in healthcare.”
Castro agreed that the benefits of AI health tools should be weighed against the risks.
“AI health tools can increase access, reduce unnecessary visits and empower patients with information,” he said. “They are not inherently unsafe, but they are not yet substitutes for clinical judgment.”
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“This study doesn’t mean we abandon AI in healthcare,” he went on. “It means we mature it. Independent testing and stronger guardrails will determine whether AI becomes a safety net or a liability.”
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