About Liz Seegert
Liz Seegert is an independent health journalist and AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. She covers older adults, baby boomers, health policy, and social determinants of health, as well as many other health issues. Her bylines include stories for PBS/NextAvenue.org. the American Journal of Nursing, TIME Health, Medscape, Consumer Reports, and Medical Economics, as well as dozens of other trade and mainstream media. Her articles have been syndicated in Forbes.com, the Los Angeles Times, the Hartford Courant, the Saturday Evening Post and other major outlets.
Cases of Alzheimer’s disease are rising throughout the world and could triple by 2050, according to a recent analysis in The Lancet. While much of this increase can be traced back to the fact that we’re living longer, researchers also concluded that three key modifiable risk factors — smoking, high body mass index and diabetes — also contribute to the increased burden and could cost health systems around the world billions in long-term services and supports.
The number of people with Alzheimer’s disease is also increasing in the U.S. and other high-income nations thanks to increased life expectancy. By 2050, cases of Alzheimer’s in those 65 and older could top 12.7 million in the U.S. alone. The rate, however, will actually decline slightly, because of the sheer size of this demographic. And can be explained largely by educational changes, according to Eileen Crimmins, Ph.D., chair in gerontology at the USC Leonard School of Gerontology.
As the search for treatment and a cure for the disease continues, addressing risk factors is one of our only viable tools. Journalists who are following this issue have an opportunity to report on other potentially fruitful research you may have missed, as well as look at how health systems in the U.S. and around the world are planning to address this looming crisis. There are also new opportunities to look into COVID-19’s effects on the brain and whether we will see more cases of dementia in the future. We also recently reported on continuing disparities in care among Blacks, Hispanics, Asian Americans and Native Americans, who continue to have a higher burden of illness and lower access to care compared with whites.
Continue reading →
Liz Seegert is an independent health journalist and AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. She covers older adults, baby boomers, health policy, and social determinants of health, as well as many other health issues. Her bylines include stories for PBS/NextAvenue.org. the American Journal of Nursing, TIME Health, Medscape, Consumer Reports, and Medical Economics, as well as dozens of other trade and mainstream media. Her articles have been syndicated in Forbes.com, the Los Angeles Times, the Hartford Courant, the Saturday Evening Post and other major outlets.
