For a long time it has been told by several doctors that one must make sure that their cholesterol is under control during middle age as it can increase the risk of brain and heart related diseases.

However, a new research has shown that the link between cholesterol and dementia during old age in women is not quiet sure.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins found out after following 1,400 Swedish women for as long as 32 years that women who suffered from high cholesterol during middle ages were not at a greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other brain related diseases in women with lower cholesterol levels.

Women with high cholesterol levels decreased the most from middle to old age which were 2.5 times more likely to develop dementia as compared to those whose levels increased or stayed at the same level.

Michelle M. Mielke, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Hopkins and lead author of the study said, “Our findings highlight how risk factors can change over the course of a person's life span.”