Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Dementia Risk Among Individuals With Low Education

Introduction: As higher dementia prevalence in ethnic minority groups could be attributed to low education, we studied individuals with low education and explored potential factors driving dementia disparities. Methods: We examined differences in dementia risk between low-educated non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics, and African Americans, and the impact of lifetime risk factors using data from the nationally representative Aging, Demographics, and Memory Study (N = 819). Results: As indicated by Cox regression modeling, dementia risk of low-educated individuals was not significantly different between ethnic groups but was related to having an APOE e4 allele (hazard ratio [HR] 1.89), depression (HR 1.67), stroke (HR 1.60), and smoking (HR 1.32). Further, even in people with low education, every additional year of education decreased dementia risk (HR 0.95). Discussion: Our findings imply that higher dementia prevalence in ethnic minorities may be attributable to low education, especially among Hispanics, in addition to other risk factors.