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Dementia, a very common mental health problem is also a common mental health issue witnessed these days in Canada. Many people are witnessing the problem in the country in these current times. Especially, common in people over the age of 60 and especially people getting aged at an early age. ‘Dementia’, the mental health problem refers to a set of symptoms and signs that are associated with a highly progressive deterioration of the cognitive functions. Ironically, these are the functions that affects the daily activities. Most commonly caused by various brain diseases and injuries. In Europe and North America according to a neural medical research Alzheimer’s disease is a very common cause of dementia as well as vascular dementia. Other common types of dementia apart from vascular dementia also includes frontotemporal dementia and Lewy body dementia.
Bringing an interference in the daily activities, the common symptoms of the mental illness includes memory loss or amnesia. Furthermore, common judgemental and reasoning issues, having changes in communication abilities. Also includes in the symptoms are changes in behaviours and moods, and finally altered visual perception. These symptoms are witnessed commonly in people who are 60+ and also very common in people after their retirement from service. In Canada, the people witnessing an old age are the common victims of memory loss i.e. amnesia and Alzheimer’s disease leading to dementia. A common example of having problems in daily activities. Hence, includes people keeping track of their belongings & people becoming in-organised. Furthermore, those becoming disoriented and finally forgetting daily routine like forgetting to pay off bills. In women, the most common issues that rise in people with the mental disease are having difficulties planning and cooking meals like before. Taking care of the right ingredients and content. Obviously, if they have been more involved into cooking.
In Canada, the disease is common in almost all over the entire country, irrespective of any provincial boundaries and territories.
HOW DEMENTIA EFFECTS CANADIANS?
Dementia is a disease that became common in Canadian citizens since 2000 from the age of 65-69. Especially in people having some neural issues. According to a research stats from PHAC or Public Health Agency of Canada. It grew from 2002 to 2013 at a far higher rate than normal, i.e. 5.3% to 7.7%. A surprisingly high increase of 2.4 % in just 11 years. These are stats just for women in Canada. However, for the men, the rate is a bit lesser in terms of the increase in percentages. Its 4.4% to 6.1% i.e. 1.7% increase in 11 years. These stats differs demographically as compared from United States and some of the European nations that includes U.K, Germany and Italy.
PREVALENCE & INCIDENCE DIFFERING IN MALE & FEMALE?
However, interestingly Canadians with dementia now live longer as compared to 20 or 30 years from today. Importantly, due to the medical treatments and remedies that are available to dementia patients. A technologically enriched medical system in Canada makes sure dementia doesn’t become the cause of death of most people.
For a disease the term ‘Prevalence’ is commonly used and is known as the proportion of people in a population who have a disease at a specified point in time. ‘Incidence’ is the term used for the occurrence of new cases of a disease in at-risk population over a specified period of time.
It differs from male to female in Canada as the statistics for ‘Prevalence’ and ‘Incidence’ differs in other countries. In Europe, the stats are completely different. Hence, as rate of increase of dementia is found to be more in male people as compared to the female population.
According to PHAC or Public Health Agency of Canada, by the year 2031 the costs that are incurred on dementia will be increased. Surprisingly, almost double to the figures that it was two decades earlier, i.e. from $8 billion to $16 billion in Canada alone.