Public health measures can reduce dementia risk & save £4bn, study finds

New research shows that a series of public health interventions that help reduce the risk of dementia could help save England as much as £4bn by reducing dementia diagnoses and supporting people to live longer lives.

In the study—which was published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity—researchers estimated the impact of the measures on dementia rates and related cost, including gains to quality adjusted life years (QALY). The steps taken include:

• reducing sugar and salt in food production;
• introducing low emission zones; and
• minimum alcohol unit pricing.

The interventions target six key risk factors for dementia: smoking, alcohol, obesity, hypertension, head injury, and air pollution. When the measures are all taken together, the researchers estimate they could yield over 70,000 more QALY.

The paper reveals that reformulating food products to reduce salt and sugar intake, and therefore reducing dementia risk from obesity and hypertension, could deliver cost savings of £2.4bn and £1.1bn respectively. They also found that increasing cigarette prices by 10% could save £157m, while making bicycle helmets compulsory for children could save £91m.

“While most of the initiatives we studied are not designed with dementia reduction as an aim, in many cases their impact on dementia risk is so great that they pay for themselves by impact on dementia costs alone, which should be routinely considered as part of cost-benefit evaluations,” said lead author of the study, Dr Naaheed Mukadam of University College London (UCL). Dr Mukadam added that policy-based approaches to reducing dementia risk are the way forward, rather than placing the burden on individuals.

It is estimated that dementia costs the UK around £42bn a year and that nearly half of cases are preventable. The number of people being diagnosed with dementia is at a record high.

“We now know that up to 45% of dementia cases are preventable, and there are cost-effective public health measures available – such as blood pressure checks and bans on smoking – that could reduce the risk of people developing dementia,” explained Alzheimer’s Research UK’s executive director of policy, Samantha Benham-Hermetz. “This would alleviate an enormous economic burden on families and wider society. The new government must seize this win-win opportunity – extending healthy life expectancy, while putting public funds to better use.”

The research involved UCL, Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, the London School of Economics and Political Science, the University of Cambridge, and funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research.

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