NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A healthy lifestyle with a good diet and regular physical exercise may help dispel the genetic predisposition to dementia, a recent study suggests.

The risk of dementia fell by 32 percent in people with a high genetic predisposition if they followed a healthy lifestyle compared with those whose lifestyle was not healthy, the study, published in the Journal of Medicine, found on Sunday.

The risk of dementia has increased nearly three times in people with a high genetic predisposition and an unhealthy lifestyle, compared to people with a low genetic predisposition and a healthy lifestyle.

"Our results are interesting because they demonstrate that we can do something to try to neutralize our genetic predisposition to dementia," said British University of Exeter researcher Elisabeta Kozma, who took part in the study.

The World Health Organization says dementia affects about 50 million people worldwide with about 10 million new cases a year, a figure that is expected to triple by 2050.

David Lowellin, also from Exeter University, said the findings carry an important message that undermines what he called "the dementia is worth."

"Some people think it is inevitable that they will be demented because of their genes," he said. "But you may be able to reduce your risk of dementia dramatically by living a healthy lifestyle."