situation that nearly a million older people find themselves in today. The report calls on the Government to urgently tackle the nation’s problem of fuel poverty by driving forward a massive energy efficiency programme. It says the only viable long-term solution for fuel poverty is to make people’s homes as energy efficient as possible so they can keep adequately warm at an affordable cost. More than 2.28m households in England were living in fuel poverty, and cold homes made a major contribution to the 31,000 ‘excess winter deaths’ in England last winter. The report also emphasises the importance of health outcomes being at the heart of any new fuel poverty strategy and programme. The health implications of living in cold homes are well established, ranging from cardiovascular and respiratory disease to depression, at an estimated cost to the NHS of £1.36bn a year. See the report here specific Health Issues DEMENTIA Blackfriars Consensus Statement on promoting brain health and reducing risks for dementia in the population The Blackfriars Consensus Statement was signed by five minsters in June 2014, including Jeremy Hunt. 65 organisations and experts from across the dementia and public health community, including practitioners and researchers, have now signed the consensus statement. The Statement says that the scientific evidence on dementia risk reduction is evolving rapidly and is now sufficient to justify action to incorporate dementia risk reduction into health policies and to raise wider awareness about which factors can reduce the risk of developing dementia. Despite the apparent and emerging associations, current NCD policies and prevention strategies focusing on risk factors do not incorporate their added potential to brain health, and the possibility of reducing the risk of dementia has been largely absent from many dementia policies. See a link to the Statement here: How tackling lifestyle factors for dementia could save the UK state £42.9 billion between now and 2040 The International Longevity Centre–UK – the leading think tank on ageing and longevity – with Improving Care have modelled the impact of matching best practice interventions from global case studies on reducing six risk factors for dementia. It has estimated that over a 27 year period (2013-2040) this could prevent nearly 3 million people developing dementia in the UK – and would reduce the costs to the state in the UK by £42.9 billion between now and 2040 (minus any associated costs of intervention). For example, if depression was successfully reduced by 22.5% by 2040 (best practice intervention) this could prevent 22,000 people developing dementia and save the state £308million. Similarly a reduction of type 2
situation that nearly a million older people find themselves in today. The report calls on the Government to urgently tackle the nation’s problem of fuel poverty by driving forward a massive energy efficiency programme. It says the only viable long-term solution for fuel poverty is to make people’s homes as energy efficient as possible so they can keep adequately warm at an affordable cost. More than 2.28m households in England were living in fuel poverty, and cold homes made a major contribution to the 31,000 ‘excess winter deaths’ in England last winter. The report also emphasises the importance of health outcomes being at the heart of any new fuel poverty strategy and programme. The health implications of living in cold homes are well established, ranging from cardiovascular and respiratory disease to depression, at an estimated cost to the NHS of £1.36bn a year. See the report here specific Health Issues DEMENTIA Blackfriars Consensus Statement on promoting brain health and reducing risks for dementia in the population The Blackfriars Consensus Statement was signed by five minsters in June 2014, including Jeremy Hunt. 65 organisations and experts from across the dementia and public health community, including practitioners and researchers, have now signed the consensus statement. The Statement says that the scientific evidence on dementia risk reduction is evolving rapidly and is now sufficient to justify action to incorporate dementia risk reduction into health policies and to raise wider awareness about which factors can reduce the risk of developing dementia. Despite the apparent and emerging associations, current NCD policies and prevention strategies focusing on risk factors do not incorporate their added potential to brain health, and the possibility of reducing the risk of dementia has been largely absent from many dementia policies. See a link to the Statement here: How tackling lifestyle factors for dementia could save the UK state £42.9 billion between now and 2040 The International Longevity Centre–UK – the leading think tank on ageing and longevity – with Improving Care have modelled the impact of matching best practice interventions from global case studies on reducing six risk factors for dementia. It has estimated that over a 27 year period (2013-2040) this could prevent nearly 3 million people developing dementia in the UK – and would reduce the costs to the state in the UK by £42.9 billion between now and 2040 (minus any associated costs of intervention). For example, if depression was successfully reduced by 22.5% by 2040 (best practice intervention) this could prevent 22,000 people developing dementia and save the state £308million. Similarly a reduction of type 2