Alzheimer's disease
- You:
- 10%
- Avg:
- 17%
Your estimated risk
We took the average risk for women and used your genetic markers to estimate your lifetime risk for Alzheimer's disease: 10%.
Here's another way to look at your risk. In a sample population:
24% have a higher genetic risk than you
76% have the same genetic risk as you
Our reference population comes from the International HapMap Project, the largest publicly available database of human genome variation. It consists of 60 Americans of European ancestry. We use this to understand how common each genetic variant is in the broader population, so we can see how your genetics compare.
Causes: Alzheimer's disease
Genes are only part of the story. Environment and behavior play a role too. Studies of twins show how much of a condition's cause is hereditary and how much is due to other factors.
What's next?
- Exercise your body (walk briskly, ride a bike) and challenge your brain (study a language, do crossword puzzles). Increasing evidence suggests these actions may help prevent Alzheimer's.
What does it mean?
You are at below-average risk for Alzheimer's, based on your genetics, and prevention measures may lower your risk even more. An estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's, and over the course of her lifetime, the average U.S. woman has a 17 percent chance of developing the disease. Alzheimer's affects about 1 in 8 (13 percent) of people over 65, and nearly half (43 percent) of people over the age of 85.
Additional genetic factors that contribute to Alzheimer’s will undoubtedly be validated in the future. But APOE is currently, and is likely to continue to be, the single most important genetic factor related to late-onset Alzheimer’s, the most common form of the disease, typically occuring after age 65.
What we found
To calculate your estimated lifetime risk, we looked at one place in your genome associated with Alzheimer's disease. Two one-letter differences in the genetic code at this location combine to determine your risk. The chart below shows how your markers affect your risk. Each risk marker increases your odds by a different amount — some a little, some a lot.
The height of the blue bars shows your odds ratio, a measure of the effect of a genetic variant on your odds of developing a condition. The clear bars represent the maximum odds ratio for each location. Roll your mouse over the chart for more information about each location.