Dementia impacts an estimated 5 million American seniors aged 65 and older, and that number is projected to rise to 14 million by 2060. While the terms Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia are often used interchangeably, Alzheimer\u2019s disease is one of the many types of dementia, much like how arthritis is a blanket term that describes over 100 forms of joint pain, inflammation or disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Keep reading to learn about the similarities and differences between Alzheimer\u2019s and dementia, the prevalence of memory loss in the United States and some of the common causes of cognitive issues among adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dementia is a broad-reaching term that refers to a number of chronic or acute cognitive issues, including memory impairment. Dementia can develop immediately following a traumatic brain injury, drug overdose or sudden cardiovascular event, such as a stroke or heart attack. Symptoms of dementia can also develop over a period of weeks, months or years, as is often the case among older adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Advanced age is the single highest risk factor for developing dementia, and there\u2019s little difference in the rates of dementia between women and men. The lifetime risk of experiencing some form of dementia is 18.2%, and as people age, their risk dramatically increases. Nationwide, just under 2% of adults have dementia, while over 40% of those aged 100 or older have some form of memory loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alzheimer\u2019s disease is the most common type of dementia among Americans. Adults aged 60 and older are at the greatest risk of developing Alzheimer\u2019s and that risk increases with advanced age, although the disease has been known to occur in adults in their 30s and 40s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While scientists still don\u2019t know exactly what causes dementia, they do know that these factors can increase the odds of developing Alzheimer\u2019s:<\/p>\n\n\n