Having a spouse with dementia may increase your own dementia risk

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-07-21 01:00

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A study of nearly one million married couples in Taiwan has found that having a spouse with dementia may put you at a higher risk of developing dementia yourself. The researchers found that the female spouses of people with dementia had a 74% higher risk of dementia, while male spouses had a 69% increased risk. The risk was lower among people with higher incomes or more children, suggesting financial resources and family context may play a role.

News release

From: JAMA

Spousal Dementia Exposure and Risk of Dementia

About The Study: In this cohort study of married individuals in Taiwan, spouses of individuals with dementia had a higher risk of dementia than unexposed spouses. The association varied across family and socioeconomic contexts, highlighting the relevance of household context in dementia risk assessment.

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Journal/
conference: JAMA Network Open

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan

Funder: This work was partly supported by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC114-2314-B-400-031-MY3; NSTC111-2628-B-400-004-MY3, PI: SHW) and the National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan (CG-114-GP-02, PI: CSW).

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