Black Americans are not as aware when it comes to knowing the facts of Alzheimer’s disease despite having a higher rate of diagnosis, according to a new study.
Published in the journal PEC Innovation, the study was conducted by researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine. In their findings, they reported that participants agreed that talking about the form of dementia is often considered “taboo,” with most people not often fully understanding the “implication” of being diagnosed.
To protect their brains, 72% of Black women involved in the study said they exercised their minds by completing puzzles. Only 59% of Black men reported the same. Overall, only 75% of all participants involved in the study said they lived a healthy lifestyle when it came to protecting their brains from Alzheimer’s.
Black Americans at greater Alzheimer disease risk and treatment burden, less awareness of disease and symptomshttps://t.co/PLSjWGy2dl #neurology #neuroscience #alzheimers
— MedLink Neurology (@MedLinkNeurol) August 20, 2024
“Our study underscores the importance of developing culturally sensitive approaches that provide meaningful learning experiences about Alzheimer’s disease and brain health for Black Americans,” said study author Sophia Wang, M.D. per a press release. “The self-reported differences in Black women and men participating in healthy lifestyles also highlight other sociodemographic factors, such as gender, that should be considered as well as we develop and test approaches.”
Previous studies have already found that Black Americans are more at risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia. Per the Alzheimer’s Association, as of now, nearly 21.3% of Black Americans aged 70 and older are already diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Overall, they’re twice as likely to get diagnosed with a form of dementia.
Once diagnosed, older Black Americans are more likely to be faced with discrimination when going to receive treatment.
In their most recent study, the Indiana University School of Medicine researchers also emphasized that once diagnosed, Black Americans have an increased difficulty navigating their treatment course, citing the increased burden of costs, lack of support and other healthcare issues as roadblocks to proper treatment.
“Combined with socio-cultural determinants of health, many Black Americans are really disadvantaged when it comes to dealing with Alzheimer’s disease,” said study author Johanne Eliacin per a press release. “We still have a lot of work to do.”
To combat the lack of awareness and promote more attention to mental exercises to prevent Alzheimer’s, Eliacin and the other researchers suggest increasing investment and proactiveness in raising alarms about this form of dementia. Researchers also suggested an increased focus on health and research equity, along with a larger focus on wellness campaigns.
“They also need additional support to facilitate access to resources so that they can engage in more activities for healthy brain support,” said researchers per a press release. “They are eager to learn, but for messages on brain health to be well received and to have the biggest impact possible, we need to increase representation of minority groups in research and Black American community members have to be part of the decision-making process and the development of outreach programs.”
