The Alzheimer's Association just released a new Fact Sheet this week. Here's a synopsis of some of the sobering statistics they provide:
Every 68 seconds, someone in the U.S. develops Alzheimer's. That number is projected to grow to one every 33 seconds by 2050, resulting in 16 million Americans with dementia.Currently, an estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's. 5.2 million are over the age of 65, while approximately 200,000 are younger than 65. The cost of caring for persons with Alzheimer's in the U.S. in 2012 is $200 billion. Those costs are largely due to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements for care and services provided. The estimated cost in 2050 is $1.1 trillion in today's dollars.1 in 8 adults over the age of 65 have Alzheimer's. Over the age of 85, almost half of Americans have Alzheimer's.1 person out of 7 with Alzheimer's lives alone, and up to half of those don't have an identifiable caregiver.Of the top 10 causes of death, Alzheimer's is ranked at number six. While all other top ten causes have declined from 2000 to 2008, the number of deaths due to Alzheimer's has increased by 66%. All other top 10 causes also have had some success in effectively preventing or curing the disease, while Alzheimer's has none. There are a few medications that attempt to slow the progression of Alzheimer's, but their success is limited. Approximately 60% of caregivers for Alzheimer's or other dementias report that they're highly or very highly emotionally stressed, and a third of caregivers report feelings of depression.View the dementia statistics for each state to see how your area is faring.
We all need to increase awareness of the widespread devastation and cost that this disease brings with it. Spread the word, please.
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