Maria Shriver urges women to act on nearly twice the Alzheimer’s risk

Maria Shriver used a Healthline interview published Sept. 20 to urge earlier attention to Alzheimer’s risk, saying women are nearly twice as likely as men to develop the disease.

Evidence grade: Moderate (consistent observational data or small trials). The brain-health case in the Healthline article rests on dementia research, including World Health Organization guidance saying modifiable risk factors are linked to as much as 45% of dementia risk. That estimate is broader than Alzheimer’s disease and does not predict any one person’s outcome.

Shriver, an author, journalist and founder of the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at the Cleveland Clinic, is working with Eli Lilly’s Brain Health Matters campaign. Healthline said the campaign focuses on signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, early detection and intervention.

“I’m really hopeful that people will actually take away from this, that their brain health matters, that there are things that they can do, and go from… feeling like there’s nothing I can do to feeling there are things I can do,” Shriver told Healthline.

Shriver has advocated on Alzheimer’s since her father was diagnosed in 2003, according to Healthline. She framed brain health as a midlife issue, saying Alzheimer’s or other dementias can be present in the brain for more than 20 years before symptoms appear.

Heather Snyder, senior vice president of Medical & Scientific Operations at the Alzheimer’s Association, told Healthline that genetics can change risk but does not settle a person’s future. “Most people with a family history will not necessarily develop Alzheimer’s,” Snyder said.

Healthline said researchers have identified over 100 genetic variants linked to higher odds of late-onset Alzheimer’s, defined there as age 65 and older. The most studied risk gene is ApoE4, or apolipoprotein E4; one copy raises risk, two copies raise it further, and surrounding DNA may also affect risk.

The article also described autosomal dominant mutations, inherited variants that account for fewer than 1% of Alzheimer’s cases. Healthline said people with these mutations are likely to develop Alzheimer’s, may develop it around the same age as an affected parent, and may have earlier onset.

On brain-health habits, Snyder said most lifestyle evidence concerns cognitive decline and dementia overall, not only Alzheimer’s disease. Healthline cited research linking sleep, heart and metabolic health, and a nutritious diet with brain health, and described the LatAm-FINGERS lifestyle-intervention study in older adults at risk of dementia across Latin American countries.

That study, building on the U.S. POINTER trial, was associated with improvements in memory, thinking and overall cognitive function, according to Healthline. The largest gains were reported among participants who received structured support and coaching around physical activity, healthy eating, cognitive training and social engagement.

The study evidence cannot show that a specific routine changes Alzheimer’s disease risk in an individual. Healthline did not report sample size, study duration, absolute effect size, funding or conflicts for the cited lifestyle-intervention studies, so readers cannot assess the precision of those findings from this article alone.

The information applies most directly to adults thinking about dementia risk, especially those with a family history or interest in genetic risk. Healthline said people concerned about genetic risk can be connected by a doctor to a genetic counselor, who can explain testing and results.

Healthline also reported that in recent years the Food and Drug Administration cleared four blood tests to improve Alzheimer’s diagnosis and approved three new treatments. The article did not name the tests or treatments, and it gave no dated regulatory or trial catalyst.

Source: Healthline News article, Sept. 20, 2026.

Atlas360 reports health research and does not provide medical advice.