Brain Diseases Affecting More People and Starting Earlier Than Ever (the USA had the worst increase in all neurological deaths, men up 66% and women 92% between 1979-2010)

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Brain Diseases Affecting More People and Starting Earlier Than Ever
Before

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Scientists have found that the sharp rise of dementia and other
neurological deaths in people under 74 cannot be put down to the fact
that we are living longer. The rise is because a higher proportion of
old people are being affected by such conditions -- and what is really
alarming, it is starting earlier and affecting people under 55 years.
(Credit: © Colinda McKie / Fotolia)
May 10, 2013 — Professor Colin Pritchard's latest research published
in journal Public Health has found that the sharp rise of dementia and
other neurological deaths in people under 74 cannot be put down to the
fact that we are living longer. The rise is because a higher
proportion of old people are being affected by such conditions -- and
what is really alarming, it is starting earlier and affecting people
under 55 years.

Of the 10 biggest Western countries the USA had the worst increase in
all neurological deaths, men up 66% and women 92% between 1979-2010.
The UK was 4th highest, men up 32% and women 48%. In terms of numbers
of deaths, in the UK, it was 4,500 and now 6,500, in the USA it was
14,500 now more than 28,500 deaths.

Professor Pritchard of Bournemouth University says: "These statistics
are about real people and families, and we need to recognise that
there is an 'epidemic' that clearly is influenced by environmental and
societal changes."

Tessa Gutteridge, Director YoungDementia UK says that our society
needs to learn that dementia is increasingly affecting people from an
earlier age: "The lives of an increasing number of families struggling
with working-age dementia are made so much more challenging by
services which fail to keep pace with their needs and a society which
believes dementia to be an illness of old age."

Bournemouth University researchers, Professor Colin Pritchard and Dr
Andrew Mayers, along with the University of Southampton's Professor
David Baldwin show that there are rises in total neurological deaths,
including the dementias, which are starting earlier, impacting upon
patients, their families and health and social care services,
exemplified by an 85% increase in UK Motor Neurone Disease deaths.

The research highlights that there is an alarming 'hidden epidemic' of
rises in neurological deaths between 1979-2010 of adults (under 74) in
Western countries, especially the UK.

Total neurological deaths in both men and women rose significantly in
16 of the countries covered by the research, which is in sharp
contrast to the major reductions in deaths from all other causes.

Over the period the UK has the third biggest neurological increase, up
32% in men and 48% in women, whilst women's neurological deaths rose
faster than men's in most countries.

Professor Pritchard said, "These rises in neurological deaths, with
the earlier onset of the dementias, are devastating for families and
pose a considerable public health problem. It is NOT that we have more
old people but rather more old people have more brain disease than
ever before, including Alzheimer's. For example there are two new
British charities, The Young Parkinson's Society and Young Dementia
UK, which are a grass-roots response to these rises. The need for such
charities would have been inconceivable a little more than 30 years
ago."

When asked what he thought caused the increases he replied, "This has
to be speculative but it cannot be genetic because the period is too
short. Whilst there will be some influence of more elderly people, it
does not account for the earlier onset; the differences between
countries nor the fact that more women have been affected, as their
lives have changed more than men's over the period, all indicates
multiple environmental factors. Considering the changes over the last
30 years -- the explosion in electronic devices, rises in background
non-ionising radiation- PC's, micro waves, TV's, mobile phones; road
and air transport up four-fold increasing background petro-chemical
pollution; chemical additives to food etc. There is no one factor
rather the likely interaction between all these environmental
triggers, reflecting changes in other conditions. For example, whilst
cancer deaths are down substantially, cancer incidence continues to
rise; levels of asthma are un-precedented; the fall in male sperm
counts -- the rise of auto-immune diseases -- all point to life-style
and environmental influences. These `statistics' are about real people
and families, and we need to recognise that there is an `epidemic'
that clearly is influenced by environmental and societal changes."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Bournemouth
University, via AlphaGalileo.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further
information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Pritchard C, Mayers, A, Baldwin D. Changing patterns of neurological
mortality in the 10 major developed countries 1979-2010. Public
Health, 2013 DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2012.12.018







http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130510075502.htm