You may have DOUBLE the risk of dementia later in life, study suggests.
People who are prone to cold sores may have double the risk of dementia later in life, a study has suggested.
Researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden found that people who have been infected with the herpes simplex virus (HSV) – which causes cold sores – at some point in their lives were twice as likely to develop all forms of dementia, compared to those who were never infected.
It is thought that the virus could increase the risk of Alzheimer’s because fragments of the virus stay in your body for life and there is some evidence they travel to the brain where they trigger the creation of amyloid-beta plaques and tau, which are hallmarks of dementia.
Between 50 and 80 percent of US adults are thought to have the HSV virus. It stays dormant in the body but during times when the immune system is low, exposure to hot sun, cold wind, a cold or other illness or even stress can cause breakouts.
