22/09/21

‘Witchcraft’ stigma surrounds dementia

Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia affect not only the sufferer, but also their family, friends and communities. Copyright: Image by Susann Mielke from Pixabay

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<h1>‘Witchcraft’ stigma surrounds dementia</h1>
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<p><strong>Season 2, Episode 4</strong></p>
<p>Every three seconds, someone around the world is diagnosed with dementia. And cases of dementia are increasing, with the largest burden felt in low- and middle-income countries. But, stigma and misunderstanding still surround dementia in Sub-Saharan Africa, and research and support are underfunded.</p>
<p>Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia affect not only the sufferer, but also their family, friends and communities. This week on Africa Science Focus, our reporter Michael Kaloki meets psychologists Elizabeth Mutunga and Wambui Karanja. Mutunga’s father lived with Alzheimer’s for 15 years before it was diagnosed, and she tells us how this drove her to study the disease and form the <a href="https://alzkenya.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alzheimer’s and Dementia Organisation Kenya</a>.</p>
<p><strong><em> </em></strong><strong><em>Africa Science Focus</em></strong><strong>, with Halima Athumani. </strong></p>
<p><a href="https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/role-models/qa-know-yourself-to-better-help-others-psychologist/"><strong>Learn more about Elizabeth Mutunga’s career</strong></a><br />
<a href="https://www.carnegie.org/"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1894676 lazyload" data-src="https://www.scidev.net/wp-content/uploads/Carnegie1.png" alt="Carnegie" width="426" height="200" src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==" style="--smush-placeholder-width: 426px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 426/200;" /><noscript><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1894676 lazyload" data-src="https://www.scidev.net/wp-content/uploads/Carnegie1.png" alt="Carnegie" width="426" height="200" src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==" style="--smush-placeholder-width: 426px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 426/200;" /><noscript><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1894676" src="https://www.scidev.net/wp-content/uploads/Carnegie1.png" alt="Carnegie" width="426" height="200" /></noscript></noscript></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>This programme was funded by the <a href="https://www.carnegie.org/">Carnegie Corporation of New York</a>.</em></p>
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<p>This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.scidev.net" target="_blank">SciDev.Net</a>. Read the <a href="https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/podcast/witchcraft-stigma-surrounds-dementia/" target="_blank">original article</a>.</p>
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Season 2, Episode 4

Every three seconds, someone around the world is diagnosed with dementia. And cases of dementia are increasing, with the largest burden felt in low- and middle-income countries. But, stigma and misunderstanding still surround dementia in Sub-Saharan Africa, and research and support are underfunded.

Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia affect not only the sufferer, but also their family, friends and communities. This week on Africa Science Focus, our reporter Michael Kaloki meets psychologists Elizabeth Mutunga and Wambui Karanja. Mutunga’s father lived with Alzheimer’s for 15 years before it was diagnosed, and she tells us how this drove her to study the disease and form the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Organisation Kenya.

Africa Science Focus, with Halima Athumani.

Learn more about Elizabeth Mutunga’s career