Why we started this site
Most people in their fifties and sixties worry about their memory at some point. A name goes missing at a party, the car keys turn up in the fridge, a word sits on the tip of the tongue for a whole afternoon. Nearly all of that is ordinary aging. Some of it isn't, and the difference matters, because several causes of memory trouble are treatable and Alzheimer's is easier to plan for when it's caught early.
The trouble is that most of what you find online is either frightening or selling something, and often both. We wanted a place that does the reading for you: the National Institute on Aging, the Alzheimer's Association, the big clinical trials, the Cochrane reviews. Then it tells you what they found in a few minutes.
The numbers, briefly
Source: Alzheimer's Association, 2026 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures
Those figures come from the Alzheimer's Association's annual Facts and Figures report. Age is the biggest single risk factor, and the climb after 75 is steep:
Share of older Americans with Alzheimer's or a related dementia, by age
People with a clinical diagnosis in Medicare claims, 2014.
Show the data as a table
| Age group | Share with dementia |
|---|---|
| Age 65 to 74 | 3.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 13.6% |
| Age 85 and older | 34.6% |
The more hopeful number is this one. In 2024 the Lancet's standing commission on dementia, an international panel of researchers, estimated that nearly half of dementia cases are linked to 14 risk factors that can in principle be changed, among them hearing loss, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, smoking and social isolation. Nobody can promise any one person a dementia-free old age, but the odds respond to ordinary habits, and that's good news.
Start here
| If you want to know... | Read this |
|---|---|
| Whether a memory slip is normal or a warning sign | 10 warning signs of Alzheimer's, compared with normal aging |
| What actually lowers your risk | Habits that protect the brain after 50 |
| How to help a parent or partner with dementia | A practical guide for dementia caregivers |
| Why risk is higher in some families | Alzheimer's in Black Americans |
| Whether vitamin E is worth taking | Vitamin E and Alzheimer's |
| Why old songs still reach people with dementia | Music and memory |
If you're 65 or older and on Medicare, there's one easy step most people skip. The yearly Medicare wellness visit includes a cognitive assessment and usually costs nothing. Ask for it by name.
Supplements, honestly
A lot of people come here because they've seen an ad for a memory supplement. We review those too, starting with our Phytomem One review, which goes through all ten ingredients, the studies behind them, the price and the refund terms. Our view of supplements in general is simple. Some ingredients have real early research, a few have been tested and came up empty, and none of them replaces a doctor's visit when memory changes are new or getting worse.
About this web address
Years ago this domain belonged to the COAACH center at North Carolina A&T State University. Coach Health has no connection to that center or the university; our About page explains what happened to the old pages and links to the center's current site.