People born between 1926 and 1935 have four times more lead in their bones than those born after 1965 AlamyDementia rates are decreasing and will continue to fall across Europe and North America thanks to the ban on lead in petrol, scientists have suggested. Due to an expanding and ageing population, the total number of people with dementia has been rising, but a study from Harvard claimed that the dementia rate — the proportion of people who develop the disease — is falling by up to 15 per cent per decade. A new study has claimed that high dementia rates may have been caused by exposure to lead emitted in car exhaust fumes, suggesting that the gradual switch to unleaded petrol in the 1970s and 1980s, and the ban on lead in petrol about 20 years ago is starting to bring dementia rates down.

Source: The Times December 19, 2019 12:00 UTC