Add us as your preferred source on Google to see more of our content in Search.
Add to Preferred SourcesNew WHO guidelines advocate physical activity and a healthy lifestyle as important strategies to prevent dementia.
“Unfortunately, many people with dementia are diagnosed too late, and treatment options are then less effective. Since dementia remains a condition without a cure, early detection, treatment, care and support are key in terms of effective public health response,” comments Bente Mikkelsen, Director of the Division of Noncommunicable Diseases and Promoting Health through the Life-course, WHO/Europe.
Used as an umbrella term for a range of symptoms caused by a disease or other brain injuries, dementia leads to a gradual decline in intellectual functioning – affecting a person’s memory, cognitive capacities and ability to engage in daily activities.
The new guidelines show that we need to act on the behaviours that increase the risk of dementia such as smoking, physical inactivity and unhealthy diet, in the same as for diseases like cancer, diabetes and stroke.
WHO estimates that nearly 50 million people worldwide are suffering from dementia, with the number of affected people expected to jump to 75 million over the next decade.
This indicates an insufficient level of preparedness to respond effectively to this public health challenge in the Region.
In response to this public health challenge, the World Health Assembly adopted the Global Action Plan on the Public Health Response to Dementia 2017–2025.
To assist the implementation of the Global Action Plan by Member States, WHO has developed “Guidelines for risk reduction of cognitive decline and dementia”, which provides a step-by-step process through which national authorities and stakeholders can identify needs, priorities and a local framework for action.
Original source: WHO
Published on 14 May 2019