According to researchers, dementia should be made a top priority health risk as they say it has become the next global ‘time bomb’.
According to a report in today’s Irish Independent, dementia could be the next big thing to affect society. But what exactly is dementia? Dementia is a loss of brain function that occurs with certain diseases. It affects memory, thinking, language, judgment, and behaviour.
Most types of dementia are not reversible (degenerative). Nonreversible means the changes in the brain that are causing the dementia cannot be stopped or turned back. Alzheimer’s disease is probably the most common type of dementia.
So what do these scientists have to say about the disease? According to Professor Peter Piot, the former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations, dementia can be compared to the AIDs epidemic of the 80s/90s and he said one person is diagnosed with the illness every seven seconds, according to the Irish Independent.
Currently 36 million people worldwide suffer from the disease with that number expected to double by 2020.
“The figures speak for themselves. We are really going into the next global health time bomb”, said Prof. Piot.
“It’s affecting, families, communities and of course the people themselves.”
For more information on the disease check out the dementia.ie website.
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