A Nation Losing Its Mind

By Abby Fullerton ’26

Among the top ten leading causes of death in the United States, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) stands alone as the only one currently lacking a known cure. [1] Since the 1970s, AD has been recognized as the most common nationwide form of dementia—the broader term for conditions that feature deficits in thinking, memory, and functional abilities. [2] Aside from existing as a mere tragedy for affected individuals and their loved ones, AD represents an escalating societal crisis whose entire scope has yet to be fully grasped by global leadership. [3]

The societal impact of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) establishes a profound crisis that is grounded in an aging demographic expansion and ample inequities embedded into the U.S. healthcare services. As a result of the global demographic shifting toward older populations, for example, AD cases within the United States are projected to surge from approximately 6.7 million today to 13.8 million by 2060. [4] This burden is not distributed equally, however: women make up 65% of all AD cases within the United States, and, in comparison to older White adults, older African Americans are estimated to be twice as likely to develop ADRD, while older Latinos are deemed one and a half times as likely to develop ADRD. [5] These striking gender and ethnic disparities can be interpreted as health-related social factors as opposed to solely biological predispositions. [6] Associated comorbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, and obesity—coupled with systemic issues such as a lack of access to quality health care, a shortage of minoritized health care practitioners, and reduced access to specialists—are common mechanisms known to contribute to elevated vulnerabilities across various groups. [7] Moreover, non-biological factors such as birthplace (e.g., residing in high stroke morality states) and lower educational attainment have proven to be life factors implicated in an increased risk for developing ADRD. [8] Effectively, these distribution patterns of ADRD exist as a societal mirror, reflecting the copious amount of structural inequalities that determine the groups with the highest risk posed, the groups fortunate enough to receive adequate care, and those who are left behind. Ultimately, the prevention and treatment of ADRD are interwoven with the acknowledgement of broader injustices in the public health care system and socioeconomic disparities. 

Presently, the immediate social toll of ADRD is absorbed by unpaid, informal caregivers, primarily composed of women. [9] As ADRD rapidly progresses from mild memory lapses to restriction in basic activities of daily living, these illnesses not only inflict ample suffering onto the diseased, but they exponentially amplify what the illness demands from a caregiver. [10] This relentless, prolonged necessity for care currently subjects 30% to 40% of dementia caregivers to heightened depression rates, which are observed at a rate significantly higher than that of caregivers for other severe conditions such as strokes or schizophrenia. [11] Further, cognitive declines craft niche societal vulnerabilities most commonly during the moderate disease stage, when mental acuity degrades but individuals maintain independence; these issues manifest themselves as financial delinquencies such as money lost due to scams and accidental overspending. [12] Such incidents, in turn, intensify caregivers’ obligation to their patients, therefore perpetuating cycles of caregiver burnout. Thus, the disease’s pathology infiltrates moral and financial infrastructures, invoking collective societal action.

Dementia is, at its core, a crisis of societal support. Ultimately, demographic trends and inequalities work in tandem with the profound strain inflicted upon caregivers to shape the vast, detrimental societal impact of ADRD. [13] Collectively and within society, dementia necessitates a new depiction, one not merely of a disease of aging but as a mutual issue of accountability. Ultimately, laboratory breakthroughs will propel ADRD forward, but society’s willingness to evolve—to facilitate a reform of healthcare accessibility, investment in caregiver support, and equitable funding for research—will remain the driving factor of dementia’s future trajectory.

Footnotes

1. “The Alzheimer’s Disease Crisis – By the Numbers,” UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, accessed November 9, 2025, https://www.usagainstalzheimers.org/learn/alzheimers-crisis.

2. Hyun Duk Yang et al., “History of Alzheimer’s Disease,” Dementia and Neurocognitive Disorders, December 2016, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6428020/.

3. “Alzheimer’s Impact Is a Societal and Economic Issue, Health Advocate Says,” Global Alzheimers Platform Foundation, September 20, 2019, hmortalityttps://globalalzplatform.org/2019/09/20/alzheimers-impact-is-a-societal-and-economic-issue-health-advocate-says/.

4. Anita Pothen Skaria, “The Economic and Societal Burden of Alzheimer Disease: Managed Care Considerations,” AJMC, November 9, 2025, https://www.ajmc.com/view/the-economic-and-societal-burden-of-alzheimer-disease-managed-care-considerations; Arindam Nandi et al., “Cost of Care for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias in the United States: 2016 to 2060,” Nature, February 8, 2024, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41514-024-00136-6.

5. “The Alzheimer’s Disease Crisis – By the Numbers,” UsAgainstAlzheimer’s.

6. María P Aranda et al., “Impact of Dementia: Health Disparities, Population Trends, Care Interventions, and Economic Costs,” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, July 2021, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8608182/.

7. Anita Pothen Skaria, “The Economic and Societal Burden of Alzheimer Disease,” AJMC.

8. María P. Aranda et al., “Impact of Dementia: Health Disparities, Population Trends, Care Interventions, and Economic Costs,” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

9. “The Alzheimer’s Disease Crisis – By the Numbers,” UsAgainstAlzheimer’s; Anita Pothen Skaria, “The Economic and Societal Burden of Alzheimer Disease,” AJMC.

10. Maria A. Cavaco et al., “Global Societal Burden of Alzheimer’s Disease by Severity: A Targeted Literature Review,” Neurology and Therapy 14, no. 5 (2025): 1797–1826, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40120-025-00815-w.

11. “The Alzheimer’s Disease Crisis – By the Numbers,” UsAgainstAlzheimer’s.

12. Maria A. Cavaco et al., “Global Societal Burden of Alzheimer’s Disease by Severity,” Neurology and Therapy.

13. Anita Pothen Skaria, “The Economic and Societal Burden of Alzheimer Disease,” AJMC.

References

Aranda, María P., et al. “Impact of Dementia: Health Disparities, Population Trends, Care Interventions, and Economic Costs.” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, July 2021. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8608182/.

Cavaco, Maria A.,et al. “Global Societal Burden of Alzheimer’s Disease by Severity: A Targeted Literature Review.” Neurology and Therapy 14, no. 5 (2025): 1797–1826. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40120-025-00815-w.

Global Alzheimer’s Platform Foundation. “Alzheimer’s Impact Is a Societal and Economic Issue, Health Advocate Says.” September 20, 2019. https://globalalzplatform.org/2019/09/20/alzheimers-impact-is-a-societal-and-economic-issue-health-advocate-says/.

Nandi, Arindam, et al. “Cost of Care for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias in the United States: 2016 to 2060.” Nature, February 8, 2024. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41514-024-00136-6.

Pothen Skaria, Anita. “The Economic and Societal Burden of Alzheimer Disease: Managed Care Considerations.” AJMC, November 9, 2025. https://www.ajmc.com/view/the-economic-and-societal-burden-of-alzheimer-disease-managed-care-considerations.

UsAgainstAlzheimer’s. “The Alzheimer’s Disease Crisis – By the Numbers.” Accessed November 9, 2025. https://www.usagainstalzheimers.org/learn/alzheimers-crisis.

Yang, Hyun Duk, et al. “History of Alzheimer’s Disease.” Dementia and Neurocognitive Disorders, December 2016.https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6428020/.