According to the largest and most precise research, being overweight cuts the risk of dementia.
British researchers admit they were surprised by the findings, which run contrary to current health advice.
The analysis of nearly two million people, in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, showed underweight people had the highest risk.
Dementia charities still advised not smoking, exercise and a balanced diet.
Dementia is one of the most pressing modern health issues. The number of patients globally is expected to treble to 135 million by 2050.
Photo AP
There is no cure or treatment, and the mainstay of advice has been to reduce risk by maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The team at Oxon Epidemiology and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine analyzed medical records from 1,958,191 people aged 55, on average, for up to two decades.
Their most conservative analysis showed underweight people had a 39% greater risk of dementia compared with being a healthy weight.
Those who were overweight had an 18% reduction in dementia – and the figure was 24% for the obese.
Any explanation for the protective effect is distinctly lacking. There are some ideas that vitamin D and E deficiencies contribute to dementia and they may be less common in those eating more.
Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, some cancers and other diseases are all linked to a bigger waistline.
In a new episode of reality show Kourtney And Kim Take Miami, Kourtney Kardashian’s boyfriend Scott Disick is seen admonishing the new mother for not losing weight quickly enough, calling her my “piece of machinery”.
Scott Disick told Kourtney Kardashian: “Last time around you tried to watch what you were eating, after you had Mason… at least you were losing weight.”
“You are so crazy. I’m trying to do it the healthy way,” she replied.
But Scott Disick admonished her: “Just do it faster. You’re my piece of machinery!”
Scott Disick then joked that Kourtney Kardashian was a “problem”, reducing her to tears.
Kourtney Kardashian in tears after Scott Disick picks on her for weighing 115 lbs after Penelope’s birth
Earlier Kourtney Kardashian complained that she was struggling.
“I feel like it’s definitely harder this time to lose the weight,” she said.
Unsympathetic Scott Disick replied: “If I would have fell in love with you a couple of pounds overweight, this would be my ideal weight, but I fell in love with you when you were super skinny.”
He then told the camera: “Right now seems to be probably the heaviest she’s ever been not pregnant.
“When we had Mason I remember her trying to whip herself back into shape pretty quick. This time around it seems like it’s the least of her concerns, and the only thing she thinks about are the kids.
“I just think that she would feel better if she got back into the shape that she feels the most comfortable in.”
And they fell out at the beach when Scott Disick again questioned her about her figure.
“It would be nice if you were in a wild little flossy bikini,” he said.
“It would be nice,” Kourtney Kardashian said before packing up and leaving the beach in a huff.
