Chronic pain tied to increased dementia

(CNN/KYMA, KECY) – Chronic pain is linked to an increased risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

According to a study published in the Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, or PNAS, the study found that people who walked with "purpose", at a pace of over 40 steps a minute, were able to cut their risk of dementia by 57% by taking just 6,300 steps a day.

But for those who suffered from chronic pain like arthritis, cancer, or back pain, the hippocampus of the brain aged by about a year in a 60-year-old person compared with people with no pain.

The risk rose as the number of pain sites in the body increased.