Promoting dementia-friendly communities to improve the well-being of individuals with and without dementia

A community is the totality of human relationships, in which individuals live with and for others. This article discusses promoting dementia-friendly community from the perspective of human relationships within a community. Improving the social well-being of aging people is important; it is especially important for people with dementia, as dementia is a life-changing syndrome that affects all aspects of one's life, including human relationships. Dementia-friendly community requires support from the community in improving the social adaptation of people with dementia, as they experience greater difficulties in social interaction as a result of cognitive decline, especially deterioration of social cognition. They need to be empowered to stay motivated for the opportunity to maintain an active and meaningful life, despite dementia. Flexible provisions of such tailored support can be effective to improve the support network in the community to meet the individual's needs. As social and human resources are limited, it is also necessary to discuss how to share socioeconomic burdens to meet both social sustainability demands and the welfare of aging adults. More discussions that include people with dementia and their family members are required to achieve the purpose of dementia-friendly community. This is important to enhance the well-being of individuals with and without dementia, as well as the society as a whole, through dementia support and dementia prevention activities. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2020; ••: ••-••.