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Alzheimer's Cases Up 10% In 5 Years

March 21, 2007

• Low Levels of 'Good Cholesterol' Linked to Memory Loss, Dementia Risk • Chemical in Celery May Fight Alzheimer's • Dementia Linked To Obesity • Studies Find Link Between Diabetes and Alzheimer's • Lifestyle Linked to Alzheimer's Onset • Pot Belly in Middle Age Linked to Alzheimer's • 10 Million Boomers Face Alzheimer's • Alzheimer's Risk Higher in Victims' Children • Fast-Acting Alzheimer's Therapy Excites Researchers • Too Much Sugar May Increase Alzheimer’s Risk • Beta Carotene May Slow Memory Loss • Promising Alzheimer’s Discovery Reported • Misconceptions About Alzheimer's Vary Among Races • Mediterranean Diet May Extend Alzheimer’s Patients’ Lives • Researchers Link Smoking To Dementia • Caffeine May Keep Dementia At Bay In Women • Alzheimer’s Drug Seen As “Safe, Effective” • Researchers “A Step Closer” To Alzheimer’s Cure • FDA Approves Alzheimer’s Patch • Scientists Raise Hopes For Alzheimer's Vaccine • Researchers Hopeful About New Alzheimer’s Therapy • Blood Pressure Drugs May Provide Alzheimer’s Protection • Progress Toward Early Alzheimer's Diagnosis Reported • Alzheimer's Cases Up 10% In 5 Years • Loneliness Linked to Dementia • Gene Changes Identified in Alzheimer's • Mental Exercise May Help Seniors • Rote Learning Improves Memory in Seniors • Vegetables May Slow Memory Loss • Cabernet Sauvignon May Reduce Alzheimer's Risk • Fruit Juice May Reduce Alzheimer's Risk • Skin Test May Detect Alzheimer's Disease • Exercise May Prevent Dementia-Like Illnesses • An Apple A Day May Improve Memory • New Drug Reverses Alzheimer's Damage, Australian Researchers Report • Diabetes Drug May Help Treat Alzheimer's • For Women, Weight Loss May Precede Dementia • Researchers "Closer" To Preventing Alzheimer's • Statins Help Memory in Older Women • Study Links Healthy Diet To Reduced Alzheimer's Risk • Tea May Help Combat Alzheimer's • Education May Accelerate Alzheimer's Effects • Alzheimer's Found to be Mostly Genetic • Exercise May Reduce Risk of Dementia in Older People • Researchers Find DNA Link to Alzheimer's • Brain Scan, Fluid Analysis May Help Predict Alzheimer's • Eating Fish Associated With Slower Cognitive Decline • Word Recall An Alzheimer' s Tip-Off? • Interrupted Alzheimer's Trial Produced Promising Results • Gene Therapy May Offer Hope For Alzheimer's Patients • Alzheimer's Researchers Reverse Memory Loss in Mice • Alzheimer's Disease Reveals Itself Earlier, Study Finds

A new report says 5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease, and that number could grow sharply as the Baby Boomers move into old age. The report by the Alzheimer's Association says the number of cases is up 10 percent from just 5 years ago.

This number includes 4.9 million people over the age of 65 and between 200,000 and 500,000 people under age 65 with early-onset Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, according to researchers.

The greatest risk factor for Alzheimer's is increasing age, and with 78 million baby boomers beginning to turn 60 last year, the group estimates that someone in America develops Alzheimer's every 72 seconds; by mid-century someone will develop Alzheimer's every 33 seconds.

The new estimates, as well as other data concerning the disease and its effects, were issued as hundreds of advocates from across the country gather in Washington, DC, for the Alzheimer's Association's annual Public Policy Forum. The report was released at a hearing chaired by Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), who, along with other lawmakers, introduced bipartisan legislation to address problems identified in the Association's report.

Alzheimer's disease now is the seventh leading cause of death in the country and the fifth leading cause of death for those over age 65.

The report warns that without a cure or effective treatments to delay the onset or progression of the Alzheimer's, the prevalence could soar to 7.7 million people with the disease by 2030.

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