December 17, 2025

expert reaction to study looking at the association between eating high-fat cheese and cream and dementia risk

A study published in Neurology looks at the association between high fat cheese and dementia risk. 

Dr Richard Oakley, Associate Director of Research and Innovation at Alzheimer’s Society, said:

“One in three people born today will develop dementia in their lifetime and so many people are interested in what they can do to reduce their risk of dementia. Further research into prevention is vital.

“This research does not show that eating more high fat dairy products, such as cheese or cream, can reduce our risk of developing dementia.

“We do know, however, that what is good for the heart is good for the head and so we recommend a healthy balanced diet.

“The Lancet Commission, which was part funded by Alzheimer’s Society, found nearly half of cases of dementia globally are linked to modifiable risk factors – or things that can be changed either on an individual or societal level.

“Evidence shows that quitting smoking, keeping physically active, eating a healthy balanced diet, managing long term health conditions and drinking less alcohol play a far greater role in reducing dementia risk than focusing on a single food.

“Anyone concerned about their risk of dementia can find out more at alzheimers.org.uk.”

Prof Tara Spires-Jones, Director of the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, Division Lead in the UK Dementia Research Institute, and Past President of the British Neuroscience Association said:

“A new study published by Du and colleagues observed that people who reported a high intake of high fat cheese in the 1990s had lower risk of developing dementia around 25 years later than people who did not eat cheese.  While these are interesting data, this type of study cannot determine whether this association of reduced dementia risk was caused by the differences in cheese consumption. One of the biggest limitations of this study is the cheese consumption as recorded from a food diary and interview at one time point 25 years before the analysis of dementia diagnosis. It is highly likely that diet and other lifestyle factors changed in those 25 years. Strong evidence from across the field indicate that healthy diet, exercise, and cognitively stimulating activities (education, challenging jobs and hobbies etc) can boost brain resilience to diseases that cause dementia. There is not strong evidence for any individual food protecting people from dementia.”

Prof Naveed Sattar, Professor of Cardiometabolic Medicine/Honorary Consultant, University of Glasgow, said:

“I do not believe there is a causal link here, as this is an observational study rather than a randomized controlled trial. It is important to note that individuals who consumed more high-fat cheese and cream were, on average, better educated. This raises the possibility of residual confounding – whereby other “healthy” characteristics associated with higher education, rather than the cheese or cream itself, may explain the lower dementia rates observed.

“We already know of several well-established and proven factors that reduce dementia risk, such as maintaining healthy blood pressure, managing weight, and preventing heart disease or stroke. These interventions should remain the priority, given their strong evidence base, rather than focusing on unproven dietary associations.”

‘High- and Low-Fat Dairy Consumption and Long-Term Risk of Dementia’ by Yufeng Du et al. was published in Neurology at 21:00 UK time on Wednesday 17 December 2025. 

DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000214343

Declared interests

Prof Tara Spires-Jones: “I have no conflicts with this study but have received payments for consulting, scientific talks, or collaborative research over the past 10 years from AbbVie, Sanofi, Merck, Scottish Brain Sciences, Jay Therapeutics, Cognition Therapeutics, Ono, and Eisai, and direct a company Spires-Jones Neuroscience, Ltd to act as a consultant. I am also Charity trustee for the British Neuroscience Association and the Guarantors of Brain and serve as scientific advisor to several charities and non-profit institutions.”

Prof Naveed Sattar: “NS has consulted for and/or received speaker honoraria from Abbott Laboratories, AbbVie, Afimmune, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Carmot Therapeutics, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Hanmi Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, Menarini-Ricerche, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Metsera, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Sanofi, and Roche; and received grant support paid to his University from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, and Roche.  No shares in any medical areas.”

For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.