Heart Health Can Help Predict Brain Health  

Poorer cardiac output correlates to lower brain volume according to a new study. Thus what's good for the heart is probably also good for the brain.  

People with the highest cardiac output (blood flow from the heart) for their body size (cardiac index), tended to have more brain volume which generally indicates a healthier brain.

In fact, the researchers said that people with the lowest cardiac output showed nearly two more years of brain aging than did those with the highest cardiac output.  

This was found to be true even in people without known heart disease.  

The results definitely suggest that cardiac health is related to brain health according to researcher’s interpretations.  

The investigators found that people within the lowest and middle range of cardiac index had significantly lower brain volumes than people who had the highest cardiac index.  

The researchers were somewhat surprised by finding that brain volume did not improve even in the middle cardiac index group. It unexpectedly showed a decrease.  

One expert said it's too early to say whether there's a cause-and-effect relationship at work here. 

While this is an interesting, strong association. Researchers are still at the association stage, and can't tell if one factor is caused by the other.  

The key message for the public is the connection between heart vascular issues and brain vascular issues. The things that affect the heart can affect brain health.