Dementia now affects one in ten US adults age 65 and older. Another 22% have mild cognitive impairment (milder memory and thinking problems). That comes from a national study published in 2022. People keep living longer, so the number with dementia will grow. Families and the healthcare system need to get ready.
Summary: People in the US and around the world live much longer than they did a few decades ago. But that has changed which diseases we see. A new US study shows that one in ten older adults now lives with dementia. Another 22% live with cognitive impairment. People are expected to live even longer over the next few decades. So the nation and its healthcare system must be better prepared to manage dementia.
In the US, people have lived longer and longer since the early 20th century. Covid-19 caused a small drop in the last few years. Still, people in the US can expect to live 10 years longer on average than in the mid-20th century.
But an older population also changes which diseases we see. Aging raises the risk of brain disorders like dementia and mild cognitive impairment. Dementia risk climbs with age. It also climbs with certain social and money factors.
No study had measured how common dementia is in the US for 20 years. So researchers ran this new study. The journal JAMA Neurology published it in October 2022. It shows that one in ten older Americans lives with dementia. Another 22% live with mild cognitive impairment.
This new study matters in many ways. First, it is part of the Health and Retirement Study. That study is long-running and mirrors the whole nation. It shows the true burden of dementia in the US. This data will help track trends for years or even decades. The study also matters because of how Covid-19 hit life spans and metabolic health in the US.
Does the risk of dementia increase with age?
The study looked at data on 3500 adults in the Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP) Project. They were part of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study (HRS), which mirrors the whole nation. It ran between 2016-17. Every person took a full set of memory and thinking tests. The tests could spot dementia and also mild cognitive impairment.
The study had many striking findings. Longer lives explain much of the rise in dementia. About 3% of people aged 65 to 69 had dementia. That rose to 35% in people 90 and over.
Researchers say this data is key to getting the US healthcare system ready. Fighting the rising rates of dementia and mild mental decline will also take specific policy changes across the nation.
Doctors say more people will live with dementia and cognitive impairment as life spans grow. The rise may be large in the coming decades. The nation must be ready to meet it.
We also need to understand what rising dementia will cost. It will add about $250 billion in healthcare costs in the US. Worldwide, it will add close to a trillion US dollars.
Who is most at risk of dementia?
The study had other big findings too. Dementia was more common in certain groups. Besides age, ethnicity, income and social class, and education were all tied to more dementia.
Data shows that dementia is more common among people who are poor and left out. So the risk of dementia is higher in African Americans. Mild mental decline is more common in Hispanics. In general, mental decline is greater in people with less schooling.
This data suggests we need even bigger studies of whole populations. They would show how each factor raises the risk of dementia and cognitive impairment.
Finally, this study shows we urgently need better tools to diagnose dementia. The healthcare system must get ready for the problems ahead.
Frequently asked questions
How many older adults in the US have dementia?
About one in ten older Americans lives with dementia. Another 22% live with mild cognitive impairment. The figures come from a study of 3,500 adults in the Health and Retirement Study, which mirrors the whole nation. JAMA Neurology published it in October 2022. It was the first US study of how common dementia is in 20 years.
Is the rate of dementia increasing?
More people will live with dementia as people live longer. Americans now live about 10 years longer on average than in the mid-20th century. Dementia risk climbs steeply with age. Doctors expect a big increase over the coming decades. They say the nation must prepare for it.
How much will dementia cost?
Rising dementia will add about $250 billion in healthcare costs in the US. Worldwide, it will add close to a trillion US dollars. Researchers say fighting these rising rates will take specific policy changes and better tools to diagnose it. It will also take a healthcare system ready for an aging population.
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