Supporting dementia prevention in primary care
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August 12, 2026
Throughout July and August, all Australians aged 50 will receive a letter, from the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, about reducing their dementia risk. Some patients may bring the letter or a dementia risk assessment report to appointments to ask questions or seek support.
While not all cases of dementia can be prevented, research shows that addressing 14 modifiable risk factors could prevent or delay up to half of all dementia cases.
The 14 modifiable risk factors include:
- education
- hearing loss
- LDL cholesterol
- depression
- traumatic brain injury
- physical inactivity
- diabetes
- smoking
- high blood pressure
- weight
- excessive alcohol
- social isolation
- air pollution
- untreated vision loss.
Routine consultations and health checks, including heart health checks, are an important opportunity to identify and address risk early.
It’s recommended to encourage patients to:
- stay active and eat a balanced diet
- get regular vision and hearing checks
- look after their heart health and manage diabetes
- seek help for mental health
- quit smoking and limit alcohol
- be social and keep their brain active.
The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing has released a suite of resources on dementia risk reduction, including resources to support GPs understand their patients dementia risk, free online assessment tools to share with consumers, translated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resources and information for culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
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