Alzheimer's disease, a neurodegenerative disorder, affects an estimated 10 million people in China. As the population ages, that figure is projected to rise to 30 million by 2030, according to the China Association for Alzheimer's Disease.
September 21 marks the World Alzheimer's Day, observed this year under the theme "Earlier Recognition, More Memories."
"The rising level of population aging in China is driving up the prevalence rate of Alzheimer’s disease. From age 60, the prevalence rate doubles with every additional five years. The age bracket of 70 to 80 is a high-incidence period that requires particular attention," said Xu Yong, president of the China Association for Alzheimer's Disease.
The official theme for this year's World Alzheimer's Day is "The Earlier You Know, The More You Can Do: A Dementia Diagnosis Matters."
Specialists classify the disease into early-onset and sporadic forms.
Early-onset cases account for about five percent of patients and typically emerge before age 65, mostly among those with a family history.
Sporadic cases make up roughly 95 percent and generally appear after age 65. Their onset is linked to factors including age and the APOE-e4 risk gene, and prevalence increases with age.
China has 10 mln people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease
China's latest round of mineral exploration has delivered strong results, with substantial new reserves of oil, gas and key metals added so far this year, a breakthrough in an ongoing push to underpin the country's advanced manufacturing industry, officials said on Tuesday.
"The new round of exploration has produced encouraging outcomes. From January to August, China was added with nearly 70 million tons of recoverable oil reserves and 610 billion cubic meters of recoverable natural gas reserves. Meanwhile, new resource volumes at the Chating copper-gold mine in [east China's] Anhui Province and the Zhugongtang lead-zinc mine in [southwest China's] Guizhou Province have reached super-large scale," said Liu Guohong, secretary of the ministry's Committee of Communist Party of China, at a press conference in Beijing.
Looking ahead, leading officials of the ministry noted that demand for critical mineral resources will continue to grow during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030). To meet that demand, China will press ahead with its strategic mineral exploration drive, secure the supply of essential minerals and provide solid support for the development of advanced manufacturing.
"The primary requirements for mineral exploration are to clarify the basic geological conditions of the country and identify areas where minerals may be found. To that end, we will implement a national geological mapping plan, raise the coverage of 1:50,000 regional geological surveys on land to 51 percent, and increase the coverage of mineral geological surveys in key metallogenic belts to 66 percent, so as to gain a clear picture of our resource and energy base," said Zhou Xing, vice minister of Natural Resources.
The leading officials said exploration will focus on minerals in short supply such as petroleum, iron, copper and aluminum, while also covering rare earths and other minerals where China holds an edge. A number of key exploration and extraction projects will be launched, and more large and medium-sized mineral deposits and oil and gas fields are expected to be discovered.
China will steadily advance the construction of some 300 energy and resource bases, significantly raise the self-sufficiency rate of strategic minerals, and boost the country's resource security.
At the same time, authorities will continue to reassess existing resources and unlock the potential of low-grade and hard-to-process mineral resources.
China reports major gains in mineral exploration drive
