Dementia rates are dropping among people over 65 years old, according to researchers

BOSTON -- Some good news when it comes to dementia.  Rates are dropping among seniors.  

Still, there is a gender difference.

Researchers at the RAND Corporation looked at survey data on over 21,000 people and found that the prevalence of dementia among Americans over 65 dropped from 12 percent in 2000 to just over 8 percent in 2016. 

The racial gap between Black men and white men narrowed, but there weren't significant improvements in the gender gap because while dementia rates fell for both men and women, women continue to experience the disease at higher rates than men. 

Researchers say the overall improvement in dementia rates may be, in large part, due to educational attainment, since learning helps brain cells maintain connections and make the brain more resilient.

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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