NOT WITCHCRAFT: Call to demystify dementia as Kenya's population ages and family support declines

Dementia is increasing in Africa as the population ages.
Making matters worse, family support for older adults has declined with migration and urbanisation.

But there is hope. The risk of dementia can be reduced.

According to the World Health Organization, “Dementia is a term for several diseases that affect memory, thinking, and the ability to perform daily activities. The illness gets worse over time. It mainly affects older people but not all people will get it as they age.”

About 40 per cent of risk factors and social determinants, such as loneliness, hearing and vision loss, are “potentially modifiable,” said Dr Edna Bosire of the Brain and Mind Institute of Aga Khan University.

Cash transfers for the elderly and literacy can also be protective, South African professor Steve Tollman said. These were some of the startling conclusions of Africa’s largest ever gathering on dementia. Over 250 experts from 35 nations attended the 'Future of Dementia in Africa' conference in Nairobi last week.

“Dementia comes with a lot of shame and stigma,” University of Ghana’s Mary Amoakoh-Coleman said.
“Taking away the autonomy of people with dementia worsens their signs and symptoms. How do we transform the culture of our communities?”

Professor of Psychiatry at University of Nairobi, David Ndetei, said “community stigma reduction programmes” were “acceptable and feasible”.

Not enough is known about the genetic basis of dementia in Africa. “Disease genetics are not uniform across populations,” University of Lagos professor Njideka Okubadejo said.

“It is crucial that genetic research extends beyond Europe.”

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