World Alzheimer’s Day : Every 3 seconds someone in the world develops dementia: World Alzheimer’s Day is an annual day that raises awareness on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia all over the world. World Alzheimer’s Day marked on 21 Sep every year. This event is an international campaign to raise dementia awareness and challenge stigma.
September month is also celebrated as Alzheimer’s months. The theme for this year’s World Alzheimer’s Month campaign is Every 3 seconds. Every 3 seconds someone in the world develops dementia.
Alzheimer‘s disease is the most common form of dementia and may contribute to 60–70% of cases.
Dementia is a collective name for progressive degenerative brain syndromes which affect memory, thinking, behaviour and emotion. Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia are the most common types of dementia, responsible for up to 90% of cases of dementia.
Symptoms may include:
- loss of memory
- difficulty in finding the right words or understanding what people are saying
- difficulty in performing previously routine tasks
- personality and mood changes
Dementia knows no social, economic or geographical boundaries. Although each person will experience dementia in their own way, eventually those affected are unable to care for themselves and need help with all aspects of daily life. There is currently no cure for most types of dementia, but treatments, advice, and support are available.World Alzheimer’s Day : Every 3 seconds someone in the world develops dementia
Dementia is now widely recognised as one of the most significant health crises of the 21st century.
Statistics
- Someone in the world develops dementia every three seconds.
- There are over 50 million people living with dementia in 2018, and this is expected to increase to 152 million by 2050 if effective risk-reduction strategies are not implemented worldwide
- Most people with dementia live in low and middle-income countries and the number in some regions is expected to increase by five times by 2050. The number of people living with dementia is expected to double in high income countries.
- Dementia is now a $US trillion-dollar disease, and already exceeds the market value the world’s largest companies including Apple and Microsoft.
Risk reduction and diagnosis
- Diagnosis of dementia is made too late.
- Earlier diagnosis is important to ensure that people living with dementia and their care partners can live as well as possible for longer, and access the support they need.
- As few as one in ten individuals receive a diagnosis for dementia in low- and middle-income countries, and less than one in two individuals are diagnosed in high income countries.
- More people living with dementia need access to a doctor who can provide a diagnosis and help to plan necessary support.
World Alzheimer’s Day : Every 3 seconds someone in the world develops dementia
