Garden State Times

There were 45 deaths from diabetes mellitus reported in New Jersey in the week ending Jan. 22, making up 2.5 percent of total deaths by all causes in New Jersey, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Jan. 22, there were 1,779 deaths in the state. 19 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 14.7 percent were from cancer and 55.7 percent were from COVID-19.

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	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	529	29.7
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	462	26
Heart disease	338	19
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	262	14.7
Alzheimer's disease	57	3.2
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	54	3
Cerebrovascular diseases	49	2.8
Diabetes mellitus	45	2.5
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	25	1.4
Influenza and pneumonia	18	1