The Center for Brain Health is among the first centers to focus on preventing Alzheimer’s disease and other aging-related brain disorders.
For years, researchers and the healthcare community have sought treatments to reduce the symptoms or slow the progression of disabilities in people with Alzheimer’s. Despite these interventions, society still faces staggering statistics:
- Currently an estimated 5.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, a number that will at least double by 2035, when our children and grandchildren enter adulthood.
- The cost of caring for people with Alzheimer’s in America today is close to $260 billion. It is one of the most expensive diseases to care for and thus a tremendous burden on families, our healthcare system and our overall economy.
- Alzheimer’s disease does not just affect the elderly. With genetic or other high risk factors, people may begin experiencing symptoms of onset as early as their 40s.
- While the risk of dying from stroke, cancer or heart disease has decreased, deaths from Alzheimer's disease increased 89 percent between 2000 and 2014.
Research has identified a wide variety of risk and protective factors that determine your likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s. The Center for Brain Health acts on this evidence to focus on ways to prevent brain diseases.