—
As the Baby Boomer generation ages and the number of Americans over age 65 rises, logic would say that the number of people diagnosed with dementia would also rise. Strangely enough, studies show that the opposite is true.
In fact, studies have shown that the dementia rate in Americans age 65 and older fell 24%over the twelve-year period from 2000 (11.6%) to 2012 (8.8%). With that number falling, still, ¼ of all hospital beds in the United States are occupied by dementia patients 65 and older.
Even with the decline, a new case of dementia is diagnosed every three seconds.
According to a New York Times article, an estimated four-five million Americans suffer from dementia at a cost of $215 billion a year to care for the patients. That’s $36 billion more than heart disease and cancer combined!
Health studies in the United States are not nearly as they should be, especially when you consider that countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia are light years ahead of us when it comes to studying not only disease and the effects on their population, but also study and implement ways to battle and cope with whatever it is they’re studying.
We discussed this at length on our Mental Health and Wellness Special Interest Group Call last night and came to several conclusions, all of which were confirmed by the research I had done prior to the group call.
The reason fewer Americans are being diagnosed with dementia is that they’re dying of other things before dementia can catch them, such as heart disease, diabetes, and strokes.
America has a culture of working people until they literally fall on their desk while having a heart attack. When companies need to cut back on their employees, they put extra work on those that they keep.
When things eventually turn around for that company and they start making money again do they hire more employees? No. They keep overworking their current employees until they get to the point they can no longer work because of health-related reasons.
As one caller last night said, “American workers are being murdered at their desks.”
In Europe, four-six week vacations are mandatory for most people and workers must take them. This keeps the workforce healthier and able to be more productive later in their lives.
What can we do to stop dementia in its tracks? Sadly, nothing. All we can do is take care of ourselves both physically and mentally, and take a lesson from Europe and stop working American employees into early graves.
Join us next Thursday, October 11, 2018, at 9 pm Eastern/6 pm Pacific for our next Mental Health and Wellness Special Interest Group Call.
—
RSVP for Mental Wellness Calls