A new survey of 2,000 U.S. adults reveals that nearly one in five care enough about their brain health that they think about it on a day-to-day basis—but also that myths and misperceptions about the brain abound, including a significant underestimation of the incidence of brain ailments.
Three out of five, or 60 percent, of Americans will develop a brain disease in their lifetimes, while respondents estimated that only 36 percent will be affected.
The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) commissioned the survey as our founder Michael J. Fox returns to network television full-time more than 22 years after his diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease (PD)—opening the door for a revived conversation about brain health.
Survey results revealed only 31 percent think they have a personal role to play in finding disease cures—a perception MJFF is working to change.
“There are many ways patients and their loved ones can help accelerate the search for cures, such as participating in clinical (human) research studies: providing a one-off blood or saliva sample for genetic testing, or even just completing a survey,” said Deborah W. Brooks, MJFF co-founder and executive vice chairman.
Other common misperceptions about the brain:
- “We use only 10 percent of their brains on a daily basis” — Researchers now know that almost all of our brains are active at all times.
- “Mental skills decline with age” — Certain mental skills actually improve with age, such as vocabulary and social wisdom.
- “Men and women are at equal risk of developing brain disease” — Risk varies across diseases. For example, men have a somewhat higher risk of developing PD.
Finally, only half of U.S. adults (50 percent) think that loss of smell can be a precursor to all brain disease. In fact, loss of smell is associated with all major brain disease, and 96 percent of newly diagnosed Parkinson’s disease patients have lost some ability to smell.
The MJFF-led Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative study is looking for people over age 60 without Parkinson’s who have lost some ability to smell. Take our smell survey to see if you qualify.
Learn more about how you can participate in clinical research and register for Fox Trial Finder to find studies you may be interested in.
Read more from the survey results in our press release.
