The Ad Council launched a campaign focused on raising awareness about early Alzheimer’s detection in the Hispanic community Wednesday morning.

The Some Things Come with Age campaign was developed in partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association and Lopez Negrete Communications.

The campaign consists of several public service announcements in English and in Spanish that portray an older Hispanic man experiencing forgetfulness. The videos differentiate between what may be a normal sign of aging and what may be an early symptom of Alzheimer’s.

“Finding it difficult to work with numbers may be a sign of Alzheimer’s,” the PSA notes. “An early diagnosis can help improve the quality of life for your loved one. Learn the warning signs of Alzheimer’s. Some things come with age; some others don’t.”

The campaign’s target audience is one that has a higher risk of developing the memory-stealing disease than other demographics.

The Hispanic/Latino population is about 1.5 times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease compared to non-Hispanic whites, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. However, despite the prevalence of this disease, diagnosis in the population lags behind that in white people, a gap largely driven by cultural and systemic barriers.

With the older Hispanic/Latino population growing significantly – by 2028, it will be the largest racial/ethnic minority in the age group of 65 and older, according to Stanford Medicine – the Ad Council is underscoring the importance of improving early detection for Alzheimer’s in the group.

“Hispanic and Latino Americans are disproportionately affected by Alzheimer’s, but are diagnosed later in the disease or not at all,” Carl Hill, chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at the Alzheimer’s Association, said in a statement. “This important campaign is designed to address this disparity by providing equitable information and other resources for Hispanic and Latino communities in the fight against Alzheimer’s and other dementia.”

In addition to the PSAs, the campaign hosts two websites: 10signs.org in English and 10señales.org in Spanish, to provide tips for caretakers or family members. These include warning signs related to early onset Alzheimer’s – from memory changes that affect daily life, to misplacing things and poor judgment. The campaign will also run in both languages on TV, radio and digital channels in order to broaden its reach.

“This body of work brings to life the idea that, as Latinos, we tend to expect certain illnesses with aging,” said Alex Lopez Negrete, president and CEO at Lopez Negrete Communications, in a statement. “The ‘waving off’ of early signs of any disease, Alzheimer’s in this case, in the name of normal aging is keeping many Hispanic families from having the necessary conversations and doctor consultations.”

Negrete added that he hopes the campaign will open an important conversation about “what getting older really brings” and dispel misconceptions that reinforce ageism.

For a February 2024 article on Republica Havas’ Alzheimer’s campaign focusing on wandering and caregiver burden, click here.