
(Natural News) The current estimated annual cost for nine of the most common neurological disorders in the U.S. was a hefty $789 billion, a recent paper revealed. According to the paper, these conditions include Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, traumatic brain injury and Parkinson’s disease, as well as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and spinal cord injury.
Researchers also projected that health care costs associated with brain damage will continue to increase as the number of elderly patients were expected to double between 2011 and 2050. Data showed that medical costs related to dementia and stroke alone were estimated to be more than $600 billion by 2030.
“The findings of this report are a wake-up call for the nation, as we are facing an already incredible financial burden that is going to rapidly worsen in the coming years. Although society continues to reap the benefits of the dramatic research investments in heart disease and cancer over the last few decades, similar levels of investment are required to fund neuroscience research focused on curing devastating neurological diseases such as stroke and Alzheimer’s, both to help our patients and also to avoid costs so large they could destabilize the entire health care system and the national economy,” said lead author Dr. Clifton Gooch, ScienceDaily.com reports.
The findings were published in the Annals of Neurology.
Is drug use a contributing factor to brain damage?
Mounting evidence point to certain medications as risk factors in developing some of the most debilitating neurological conditions in the country. A study published in the JAMA Internal Medicine found a correlation between long-term use of anticholinergic medications like Benadryl and the onset of dementia. Anticholinergic drugs were shown to inhibit the action of acetylcholine, an organic chemical that plays a crucial role in learning and memory…

Source: Brain-damaging vaccines, pesticides and medicines generate nearly $800 billion a year in medical revenues – NaturalNews.com