Recent Study Suggests Dementia and Other Cognitive Impairments Are on the Decline

The results of a national study showing a downward trend in the rate of cognitive impairment among Americans aged 70 and older were widely reported yesterday. The term 'cognitive impairment' is used to cover those suffering from significant memory loss and different types of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease. The study from the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia was produced by a team of two University of Michigan Medical School physicians and their colleagues. An excerpt from the University of Michigan press release:

"The prevalence of cognitive impairment in this age group went down by 3.5 percentage points between 1993 and 2002 -- from 12.2 percent to 8.7 percent, representing a difference of hundreds of thousands of people."

"And while the reasons for this decline aren't yet fully known, the authors say today's older people are much likelier to have had more formal education, higher economic status, and better care for risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking that can jeopardize their brains."

Read coverage of the study reported by the Seattle Times, Boston Globe, and Science Daily. Carol Bradley Bursack, eldercare columnist for OurAlzheimers.com, writes about how seemingly conflicting studies can confuse the general population. (In October 2007, The American Academy of Neurology released a study indicating that among people who develop dementia, those who are more educated lose their memory at faster rate.) Bursack writes:

"One thing these studies all seem to agree on is that people shouldn't quit learning. Exercising one's mind and caring for one's physical health seem to be key to remaining as healthy as possible, overall. Keeping an active mind and body are not guarantees that dementia will not strike. But keeping our minds active and our bodies as healthy as our genes will allow are somethings we can do that certainly will not cause harm, and doing these things can give us hope that we may remain dementia free, or at least put off the effects for a longer period of time. There will always be exceptions, but why not try?"

"The study is also realistic in noting that the sheer numbers of elders who are (and will be) living longer ensures that we will be fighting Alzheimer's and other dementia for years to come. Nothing is 'licked' yet. However, any good news on this front is welcome to we who are on the leading edge of baby boomers, and to our children."