Dementia Is Now the Leading Cause of Death for Women Over 50*
- Janice Tracey
- 5 hours ago
- 5 min read
You read that right. Women over 50, we have to sit up and take notice. There's no one coming to save us. So why is this happening and what can we do?
If you’re anything like the women I work with—juggling the demanding roles of professional, mother, grandmother, and often caregiver to elderly parents—you already have a lot on your mind. You worry about your bone density, fighting off that persistent fatigue, managing weight, protecting against Type 2 diabetes. You're either going through the peri and menopause stage or your post menopause, most of which has it's own symptomology to manage. Now, increasingly, you worry about cognitive decline.
I want to dive into a topic that feels particularly heavy for us women over 50, especially given that it is now recognised as the leading cause of death for women over 50*: dementia and cognitive health. It can feel frightening, but understanding the risk factors is the first and most powerful step we can take toward prevention.
The Stark Reality: Dementia and the Female Experience
Dementia is rapidly becoming one of the biggest public health challenges globally. It’s characterized by a progressive decline in memory, language, and problem-solving skills, compromising a person’s ability to function independently. Despite popular belief, dementia is not a natural or inevitable consequence of aging. What really struck me when looking at the numbers is just how much this crisis centers around women.
• Higher Prevalence: The majority of people suffering from dementia are women. In Ireland, for instance, out of the estimated 50,000 to 55,000 people living with a dementia diagnosis, 35,000 are women and that's based on figures from about 5 years ago.
That is a significantly high proportion. In the UK, women make up 61% of dementia patients.
• Leading Cause of Death: Dementia has become the leading cause of death for women in the UK*.
• The Estrogen Link: One major biological reason for this increased risk is related to our hormonal changes. As we age and go through perimenopause or menopause, our ovaries produce less estrogen. Estrogen is a neuroprotective factor that we rely on throughout our lives. When estrogen production stops, it is "one of the protectors that have fallen off the side". This drop in estrogen means your risk of cognitive decline has increased.
The Caregiving Burden: Why This Is More Than Just a Health Issue
Beyond the biological risk factors, dementia disproportionately impacts women because we tend to be the default caregivers.
What makes this disease devastating is that it affects the lives of not only the patients but also everyone around them, especially carers and family members. Women bear most of the responsibility of caring for dementia sufferers, whether they are family members or health care professionals. A study in five EU countries found that 82.8% of family carers were women.
This immense caregiving load compounds stress and fatigue, placing an unsustainable economic and emotional burden on women. Furthermore, women often face more economic and social disadvantages in later life, making it harder to afford and access appropriate dementia treatment and care if they become patients themselves.
The Research Status: What We Know and What We Don’t
Currently, dementia is the only condition in the top 10 causes of death without a treatment to prevent, cure, or slow its progression. Much about it remains unknown, and rates are often underestimated because approximately half of people living with dementia in Europe have never been diagnosed.
However, research is increasingly showing that dementia risk is determined by a complex interaction of modifiable and non-modifiable factors (like age and genetics). For women specifically, studies have identified key risk factors that mirror the health worries you might already have:
• Metabolic and Vascular Health: Cardiovascular morbidities like high blood pressure, hypercholesterolaemia, diabetes, and obesity are major risk factors. In women, midlife dyslipidaemia (unhealthy fat levels in the blood), diabetes, and hypertension are specific predictors for converting from normal cognition to mild cognitive impairment. Overweight is specifically harmful for women in relation to dementia onset. This is one of the reasons why I specialise in supporting women over 50 who want to move into the healthy weight range and stay there.
• Sleep and Mood: If you struggle with fatigue, you should know that sleep problems and disorders (women are 40% more likely to develop insomnia) increase the risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) dementia. The greater the frequency and severity of depressive symptoms, the greater the risks, and women generally have higher rates of depression than men.
Taking Control: Lifestyle Steps You Can Take Today
Since that natural neuroprotective factor (estrogen) has declined, it makes it all the more important for us to "ramp up all of the other things"Â we can do to minimize risk.
Here are the top four lifestyle tips you can start integrating right now, addressing your concerns about metabolic health, fatigue, and cognitive decline:
1. Optimize Your Gut Health
Gut health is incredibly important in minimizing your risk of suffering from dementia or cognitive decline. If you’re feeling bloated or heavy, focusing on gut health can help you feel "much more alert and a lot lighter internally".
2. Get Your Nutrition On Track
A whole food, mainly plant-based diet can minimize your risk of having a form of dementia.
• Focus on Plants: Aim to fill at least 50% of your plate with beautiful, brightly colored vegetables. Look for diversity in type, texture, and color to gain a wider range of nutrients and fiber. Fiber is key to healthy metabolic function!
• Add Healthy Fats: The other half of your plate should include moderate protein and healthy fats. Choose cold-pressed olive oil, olives, avocado, oily fish, nuts, and seeds. Remember that oils like flax seed oil are fantastic drizzled over salads but should not be used for cooking.
• Kick Out Refined Carbs: You must minimize or kick out all your refined carbohydrates. This includes sweet things like cookies, biscuits, fizzy drinks, chocolates, and sweets. These highly refined and sugary items help to drive insulin. Since type 2 diabetes and hypertension are specific predictors for cognitive issues in women, reducing insulin spikes is crucial for brain and metabolic health.
3. Reduce and Manage Stress
I know how difficult this is when you are overburdened with caring responsibilities, but stress management is key. Stress reduction is not just a once-a-week yoga class; you need to have practices in place every single day and possibly a couple of times a day. Simple breathing exercises and short meditations can help reduce the stress response in your body.
4. Keep That Brain Active
Keeping your brain active helps to regenerate brain cells and keep cognitive decline at bay. Simple, engaging activities like doing Sudoku or crossword puzzles, learning a new language, or playing brain training games on your phone or computer can make a difference. Active engagement in mental, physical, and social activities may delay the onset of the most common forms of dementia.
What I find wonderful is that all these changes address and support so many of our female health challenges as we get older. For example one or two simple nutrition changes might support your bone health, brain health and weight loss challenge as well as promote better sleep and reduce fatigue.
By focusing on these practical, daily changes in nutrition, stress management, and mental activity, you are actively protecting your brain and metabolic health for the decades ahead. It’s about building a better defense now that your natural hormonal protectors have retired!
Check out my Work with Me page for ways I can support you.
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