Abstract
Background and Objectives To document racial/ethnic and nativity differences by gender in cognitive life expectancies among older adults in the United States. Research Design and Methods Sullivan-based life tables were used to estimate cognitively normal, cognitively impaired/no dementia (CIND), and dementia life expectancies by gender for White, Black, U.S.-born Hispanic, and foreign-born Hispanic adults 50 years and older in the Health and Retirement Study. Results Among women, the number of years spent living with dementia for Whites, Blacks, U.S.-born Hispanics, and foreign-born Hispanics was 1.6, 3.9, 4.7, and 6.0 years, respectively. For men, Whites lived 1.1 years with dementia compared to 3.1 years for Blacks, 3.0 years for U.S.-born Hispanics and 3.2 years for foreign-born Hispanics. Similar patterns were observed for race/ethnic and nativity differences in CIND life expectancies. Blacks and Hispanics spend a larger fraction of their remaining years with CIND and dementia relative to Whites, regardless of gender. Foreign-born Hispanic men and women and Black men are particularly disadvantaged in the proportion of years spent after age 50 with CIND and/or dementia. Discussion and Implications Disparities in cognitive life expectancies indicate that intervention strategies should target the specific needs of minority and immigrant older adults with dementia. Given that education is a strong predictor of cognitive health, improving access to the social and economic resources that delay dementia onset is key to improving the well-being of diverse older adults.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 281-289 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Gerontologist |
Volume | 59 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 14 2019 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Cognitive impairment
- Dementia
- Life expectancy
- Nativity
- Race/ethnicity
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine