SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS

The Hunt for a Cure for Dementia Continues

Americans impacted by dementia know how debilitating it can be physically, emotionally and financially. An estimated 6.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, the most common disease that causes dementia, and that number is expected to swell to nearly 14 million by 2060. It’s not surprising considering the state’s older population that Florida is greatly impacted by Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. However, even more alarming is the that the mortality rate for Alzheimer’s is up 72% since 2000, while mortality rates have decreased for other leading causes of death such as cancer, stroke, and heart disease. And while the U.S. is investing billions of dollars in search of a cure, dementia is not yet preventable. A recently released study, “The Dementia Crisis: A State-by-State Look,” analyzed data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Alzheimer’s Association to help determine why certain regions of the country are more impacted that others. Among the findings reported:

• Florida is the No. 19 least impacted state. The Alzheimer’s mortality rate is 19.6 per 100,000 and the annual Medicaid cost for dementia is $4,636.

• The top five risk factors for dementia are high blood pressure (50 percent prevalent in people with dementia), lack of exercise, obesity, diabetes, and depression.

• Dementia has a significant impact on family caregivers. The value of unpaid caregiving is $340 billion and more than half of family caregivers report extreme stress, while 47 percent sleep less and about the same number report feeling “isolated.”

• The ten most impacted states in the country are Texas, Alabama, Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee and West Virginia.

• There are five easy steps one can take to help reduce risk of dementia. They are exercise, eat healthy, moderate drinking, maintain social relationships and exercise the brain through activities such as crossword puzzles, sudoku or learning a new language. u