If you suffer from girth imbalance—also known as belly fat—you certainly are not alone. It is estimated that 50 percent of adult Americans carry unhealthy supplies of fat around their middle.

Excess fat, particularly in the abdomen, can lead to a higher risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and premature death.

Researchers have now concluded that that creeping middle age belly fat also predisposes us to the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.

Dementia is an age-related disease that robs its victims of memory and cognitive functions; things like perception, reasoning, judgment, thinking, and speech.

One in ten Americans over the age of 65 suffers from some form of dementia; 60 to 80 percent suffer its most common form, Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine studied 733 adults, with an average age of 60.

The group was composed of 30 percent men and 70 percent women. Each individual went through body mass (BMI) measurements as well as scans to assess abdominal fat.

The results, concurrent with other similar studies, showed that as the BMI increased, brain volume decreased.

“Our data suggests a stronger connection between central obesity . . . and risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease,' said Sudha Seshadri, leader of the study published in the journal Annals of Neurology.

This means that for people reaching middle age, their 50s and 60s, there is a direct correlation between the increase in the waistline and decrease in brain size. Consequently the chances of some form of dementia hitting this particular group of people increases.

Two recent studies on genetics and dementia reported that people genetically predisposed to obesity have a higher risk of dementia-related disorders, such as Alzheimer’s.

The fat mass and obesity gene (FTO gene) predisposes carries to obesity as well as brain deficits.

Carriers of the FTO gene can fight nature, however, by staying on a low-fat diet and following a regular exercise regimen.

Abdominal fat is becoming known as the most dangerous kind of fat to carry. The good news is that belly fat is easier than other kinds of fat to get off. It is the first fat that comes off with diet and exercise.

So if you are ready to decrease your risk of dementia and are interested in beginning your weight loss now, visit the HealthNews diet pages and test out our Individual Diet Selection tool, which can help find the right diet for you lifestyle.