Controlling blood sugar levels in people with Type 2 diabetes may help prevent dementia, experts say.
A study of 350,000 people with Type 2 diabetes found poor blood sugar control was associated with hospital admissions for the condition.
While scientists have previously suggested a link between high blood sugar and Alzheimer's disease, this new research found that those with high blood sugar levels had a 50 per cent chance of being admitted to hospital with dementia compared to those with good control.
In the UK there are 3.3 million people diagnosed with diabetes, with 90 per cent Type 2, which is linked to obesity.
Diabetes UK expect this figure will rise to five million by 2025.
The data was taken from the Swedish National Diabetes Registry for the period January 2004 to December 2012 and involved analysing blood sugar levels as measured by the HbA1c diabetic blood test.
After adjusting for factors that may influence the results, they found that those patients with sugar levels of 10.5 per cent or higher were 50 per cent more likely to have dementia than those with a well-controlled level of 6.5 per cent or less.
It also found those patients who had suffered a stroke previously were 40 per cent more likely to develop dementia than those who had not had a stroke.
Dr Aidin Rawshani and colleagues presented their findings at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes conference in Stockholm.
"The positive association between HbA1c and risk of dementia in fairly young patients with Type 2 diabetes indicates a potential for prevention of dementia with improved blood sugar control," they said.
Dr Richard Elliott, research communications manager at Diabetes UK, said: "We already know that high blood glucose levels are linked to a higher risk of problems with memory and thinking in people with Type 2 diabetes, which can in turn lead to a higher risk of dementia in later life.
"The exact reasons for this are still unclear, but it is important to manage diabetes carefully in order to reduce the risk of serious complications.
"The best way to do that is to take diabetes medications prescribed by your doctor and to maintain a healthy weight by exercising regularly and eating a healthy balanced diet that is low in salt, fat and sugar."
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