Who is most at risk of getting dementia?
All risk factors can be divided into immutable and modifiable, says the neurologist.
The first to be changed are age. Those under 60 are less likely to suffer from dementia – the disease becomes very common when a person is 80 or older. For example, dementia affects regarding one in six people between the ages of 80 and 85, one in three over 85, and nearly half of people over 90.
Another factor is family history of dementia. Some forms of dementia have a genetic component, meaning that they, are usually inherited. For example, people who have first-degree relatives (parents or siblings) with Alzheimer’s disease are more likely to get the disorder. The risk is also higher if a family member developed Alzheimer’s disease at a younger age (before age 70), and lower if the relative did not develop Alzheimer’s disease until old age.
It is worth mentioning those who diagnosed Down syndrome. By middle age, many people with this diagnosis develop dementia.
