Deaths from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease may have been indirectly accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic, data analysis has shown.
In illnesses such as liver disease and diabetes, a similar proportion of deaths to the pre-pandemic average was recorded, a report said.
But data published on Tuesday by the UK’s Office for National Statistics showed there were more Alzheimer's and dementia deaths than expected during the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak.
“Though further investigation is required to understand this, it offers cautious evidence that the indirect effects of the coronavirus pandemic may have accelerated mortality in certain causes of death,” the ONS said of its findings.
“There is further evidence of mortality displacement in the analysis of excess deaths by underlying cause when comparing the period March to December 2020 with January to December 2021.
“Though most causes of death saw similar proportions of excess deaths across these two periods, deaths due to dementia and Alzheimer's disease displayed a notably different trend.”
The ONS found an excess of 4,990 deaths due to those conditions, representing an increase of 9.7 per cent.
The report covers deaths in England and Wales between March 2020 and December 2021.
It found the leading causes of death with the highest numbers of excess deaths were symptoms and ill-defined conditions often linked to old age and frailty, (7,085 excess deaths), cirrhosis and other diseases of the liver (3,061 excess deaths), and diabetes (2,696 excess deaths).
The months with the highest number of excess deaths were April 2020 (43,796 excess deaths) and January 2021 (16,548 excess deaths).
The age group with the highest number of excess deaths that were not due to Covid-19 was 70 to 74.
As the UK tries to move away from the lockdowns of the past two years, a surge in new Covid-19 cases is being recorded, particularly in Scotland.
The number of coronavirus patients in Scotland's hospitals has reached a record high for a second consecutive day, at 2,221.
The number of people in hospital with Covid-19 in two regions of England has climbed to the highest level for more than a year, in the latest evidence of a resurgence of the virus.
South-east England has now joined the south-west in recording patient levels last seen in February 2021, surpassing the peaks reached in the previous surge of infections at the start of 2022.
The Welsh government is considering extending certain coronavirus restrictions to deal with rising infection numbers.
The UK has registered 20,319,434 infections and 163,679 deaths since the first Covid-19 case was identified in China in 2019.
Top investing tips for UAE residents in 2021
Build an emergency fund: Make sure you have enough cash to cover six months of expenses as a buffer against unexpected problems before you begin investing, advises Steve Cronin, the founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com.
Think long-term: When you invest, you need to have a long-term mindset, so don’t worry about momentary ups and downs in the stock market.
Invest worldwide: Diversify your investments globally, ideally by way of a global stock index fund.
Is your money tied up: Avoid anything where you cannot get your money back in full within a month at any time without any penalty.
Skip past the promises: “If an investment product is offering more than 10 per cent return per year, it is either extremely risky or a scam,” Mr Cronin says.
Choose plans with low fees: Make sure that any funds you buy do not charge more than 1 per cent in fees, Mr Cronin says. “If you invest by yourself, you can easily stay below this figure.” Managed funds and commissionable investments often come with higher fees.
Be sceptical about recommendations: If someone suggests an investment to you, ask if they stand to gain, advises Mr Cronin. “If they are receiving commission, they are unlikely to recommend an investment that’s best for you.”
Get financially independent: Mr Cronin advises UAE residents to pursue financial independence. Start with a Google search and improve your knowledge via expat investing websites or Facebook groups such as SimplyFI.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
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The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion
