How your bank account might predict dementia

Some of the earliest signs of dementia can show up in your financial portfolio. Missed bill payments and erratic investments could be indicators, and they can happen years before an official diagnosis. Today on the show, we dig into the connection between finances and dementia, and why the financial health of seniors is falling through the cracks.<br /><br />The Indicator has a weekly newsletter! Be among the first to sign up now: <a href="http://npr.org/newsletter/indicator" target="_blank">npr.org/indicatornewsletter</a> <br /><br /><strong>Related episodes: </strong><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/09/06/1197883843/the-dementia-tax" target="_blank">The dementia tax<br /></a><a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/09/26/1201730554/what-does-the-next-era-of-social-security-look-like" target="_blank">What does the next era of Social Security look like?<br /></a><a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/10/17/1128716774/saving-borrowing-spending-an-economists-take-on-popular-advice-planet-money" target="_blank">Saving, borrowing, spending: an economist's take on popular advice (Planet Money+)</a><br /><br /><em>For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at </em><a href="http://plus.npr.org/" target="_blank"><em>plus.npr.org</em></a><em>.</em> <em>Fact-checking by </em><a href="https://www.npr.org/people/1268825622/sierra-juarez" target="_blank"><em>Sierra Juarez</em></a><em>. </em><em>Music by </em><a href="https://dropelectric.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank"><em>Drop Electric</em></a><em>. Find us: </em><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>TikTok</em></a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/planetmoney/" target="_blank"><em>Instagram</em></a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>Facebook</em></a>, <a href="http://npr.org/indicatornewsletter" target="_blank"><em>Newsletter</em></a><em>. </em> <br /><br /><br />See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>