Peach Tree Times

There were 35 deaths with diabetes mellitus listed as the underlying cause reported in Georgia during the week ending November 6, a 28.6 percent decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending November 6, there were 1,720 deaths in the state. 21.3 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 16.2 percent were from cancer and 16.4 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.4 percent of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-11-06	Number of Deaths 2021-10-30
Heart disease	366	383
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	278	329
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	150	220
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	132	199
Cerebrovascular diseases	100	91
Alzheimer's disease	81	79
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	75	86
Diabetes mellitus	35	49
Influenza and pneumonia	33	29
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	29	40

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths 2021-11-06	Number of Deaths 2021-10-30
Alzheimer disease and dementia	162	167