Dementia rates higher among black people, finds study
But researchers warn that black people are much less likely to be formally diagnosed and receive support

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Black people are far more likely to develop dementia than those from white or Asian ethnic groups, according to new research.
However, the researchers, from University College London and King’s College London, warn that black people are much less likely to be formally diagnosed and to receive support.
The study, published in the journal Clinical Epidemiology, is believed to be the first to analyse rates of dementia diagnosis in the UK by ethnicity and gender.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The data shows that the incidence of dementia diagnosis are 25% higher among black women than white women, and 28% higher among black men than white men.
Asian women and men were 18% and 12% less likely than white women and men, respectively, to have a dementia diagnosis, according to The Independent.
Overall, the proportion of people in the study to have dementia diagnosed each year rose from 3.75 per 1,000 in 2007 to 5.65 per 1,000 in 2015, adds The Times.
“What we found suggests that the rates of people receiving a diagnosis may be lower than the actual rates of dementia in certain groups, particularly among black men,” said study co-author Dr Tra My Pham, from UCL’s Institute of Epidemiology and Health. “It is concerning that black people appear to be more at risk of dementia but less likely to receive a timely diagnosis.”
The researchers have various theories as to why dementia rates appear to be so low among Asian people. The “apparent paradox” of lower levels of dementia might reflect “differing genetic susceptibility”, they said. But cultural inequality and stigma leading to lower levels of diagnosis may also play a role.
“Our new findings may reflect, for example, that there are inequalities in the care people receive to prevent and treat illnesses associated with dementia,” said lead author Dr Claudia Cooper, from UCL’s Division of Psychiatry. “Or perhaps GPs or patients’ families are reluctant to name dementia in communities where more stigma is associated with a dementia diagnosis.”
“Perhaps British Asians do have a lower risk, or they may only be less likely to be diagnosed when they develop it,” she continued. “Rates of timely diagnosis in the UK have been improving, but it appears that not all groups of society are benefiting equally. It’s important that messages that dementia is best diagnosed early are tailored to different groups. We’ve previously found that people’s cultural background can influence how willing or unwilling they are to seek help.”
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 23 September 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
By The Week Staff Published
-
Pinochet’s coup in Chile 50 years on
The Explainer Half a century on, the former leader still sharply divides opinion in his home country
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Ghost tankers, loyalty cards and contempt
Podcast Should we be worried about illicit oil tankers? What are the limits to protests outside court? And are supermarket loyalty schemes all they seem?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Neanderthal gene ‘caused up to a million Covid deaths’
Speed Read Genetic tweak found in one in six Britons means cells in the lungs are slower to launch defences
By The Week Staff Published
-
Legalising assisted dying: a complex, fraught and ‘necessary’ debate
Speed Read The Assisted Dying Bill – which would allow doctors to assist in the deaths of terminally ill patients – has relevance for ‘millions’
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Vaccinating children: it’s decision time for the health secretary as kids return to school
Speed Read Sajid Javid readying NHS England to roll out jab for children over 12, amid fears infections will rocket
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
‘Vaccination blunts, but does not defeat’: exploring Israel’s fourth Covid wave
Speed Read Two months ago, face masks were consigned to bins. Now the country is in a ‘unique moment of epidemiological doubt’
By The Week Staff Published
-
Thousands told to self-isolate in Covid app pinging error, claims Whitehall whistleblower
Speed Read Source says Matt Hancock was privately told of the issue shortly before he resigned as health secretary
By The Week Staff Published
-
Record 5.45m people on NHS England waiting lists
Speed Read Health chief warns that crisis is nearing ‘boiling point’ as backlog grows
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Covid testing: the ‘great new game of holiday roulette’
Speed Read On one day last week, the price of a private PCR test ranged from £23.99 to £575
By The Week Staff Published
-
San Marino is first European country to offer ‘vaccine vacation’
Speed Read Tiny landlocked nation to give Russian Sputnik vaccine to paying tourists
By The Week Staff Last updated