Americans fear developing Alzheimer’s disease more than cancer, stroke, heart disease and any other life-threatening illness, according to a Marist Institute poll released this week on behalf of Home Instead Senior Care.
Forty-four percent of all respondents said they feared Alzheimer’s more than any other disease. But among those 65 and older, 56 percent cited the memory-robbing dementia as the diagnosis of most concern to them.
The survey found that the inability to care for oneself was the biggest worry, followed by the loss of life memories and memories of loved ones.
Nationwide, more than 5 million people are afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias. And in the coming decades, as the baby boom population ages, that number is expected to more than double.
Home Instead-Marist Poll_Alzheimers Tables