THE BURDEN OF NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES

Researchers tracked more than 12,000 healthy people over the age of 45 from 1990 to 2016. Nearly 1,500 were diagnosed with dementia — 80 per cent with Alzheimer’s — while 263 developed Parkinson’s. As women live longer, they have an increased risk of such diseases. They were twice as likely as men to develop both dementia and stroke.

There are no cures for these diseases, but a healthy lifestyle — a good diet, not smoking or having diabetes — can protect to an extent