New York: Loss of appetite in older women may be an early-warning of dementia, according to research from the Mayo Clinic in the US.

They have found that ten years before dementia, sometimes a precursor to the more serious Alzheimer’s disease sets, women may experience weight loss. Sufferers of dementia are also likely to weigh a stone less than they did 30 years earlier.

The doctors concluded that the weightloss was a direct result of the disease’s impact on the brain. They looked at 560 men and women diagnosed with dementia and noted their weight over a 30-year period. These were compared with another group free of the disease. A clear trend of weightloss amongst women with dementia emerged.

The researchers concluded that weight-loss could advance understanding of the mechanisms involved in the condition.