In my husband's ALF dementia unit, there are about 8 men and 20ish women. Here, on the AlzSpouse board, the ratio is roughly the inverse of that. (in terms of gender of spouses who have the illness.)
Well, yes...I think that in the case of the Board, women have a higher probability of reaching out for this kind of support system. As for actual numbers of residents in the dementia facility--presumably is has to do with longevity statistics. More women living longer ∴ more women with Alz.
The longevity thing, though, also would impact this board's stats, since--while there are, obviously, plenty of women with the illness--there is a greater chance that (due to longevity differences) they will cared for/placed by children than there is that they'll be cared for/placed by a husband.
According to all the articles I have read, the statistics say that more women than men get Alzheimer's Disease. It was completely the opposite in the support group I used to attend. Many more men with the disease. However, I think our view is skewed due to Emily's observation that women are much more likely to seek out support than men. Thus, the preponderance of women on this board and in support groups - makes it appear that more men than women have AD, when perhaps the caregivers of all the women with AD are simply not showing up for support.
I agree with Joan. After Clare's diagnosis I searched for a support group for her to attend. I drove her there the 1st day, brought the newspaper, and expected to simply read for an hour in the lobby until her group was over. But Clare insisted that I attend the spouse caregiver group meeting at the same time in another room. I didn't feel the need for a group but she insisted I do it 'just this one time for her' so I went. And, naturally, I was hooked and for the next 3 years she got almost nothing out of her group while my group has bonded so tightly that I cannot imagine life without their support. Although I no longer attend weekly meetings, I still meet weekly with several current and former members over lunch while Clare is attending a day care program, and I along with current and former members email each other quite often. I'd agree that many men just don't think they need a support group. But if all spouses were able to join a good weekly support group ... and if all spouses came regularly to this site ... then living with a person with AD would be a little less stressful.
Another feature of this group is the number of early onset AD. In the general population EOAD is relatively rare. I think the reason for the higher numbers on this group has to do with computer literacy.
I can confirm the women outnumber the men in my wife's NH and she is one of two with EOAD both women. In the respite centre she went to once a week for almost a year the same thing was true but not to the same degree. The women outnumbered the men clearly but not by a wide margin.
I agree with the thoughts that women reach out easier and that younger people would likely be more computer literate. There are hundreds of women here though over the last few years that master computer literacy just fine and I think it's fair to say the male population overall has been less than 20%. Even including paulc's observation that women tend to marry men older than they are, I think you have to conclude that men really don't reach out as well.
That's too bad because everyone knows how important having this support has been at times.
“Prevalence of Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias in Women and Men
More women than men have Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. Almost two-thirds of Americans with Alzheimer’s are women. Of the 5.2 million people over age 65 with Alzheimer’s in the United States,3.4 million are women and 1.8 million are men.
Based on estimates from ADAMS, 16 percent of women age 71 and older have Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias compared with 11 percent of men.
The larger proportion of older women who have Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias is primarily explained by the fact that women live longer on average than men. Many studies of the age specific incidence (development of new cases) of Alzheimer’s disease or any dementia have found no significant difference by gender. Thus, women are not more likely than men to develop dementia at any given age.”