Older adults who say their memory problems are now getting in the way of daily life are more likely to live in homes where guns are not stored safely, according to a new analysis from the University of Washington. The finding adds a blunt public-health layer to the same tough conversations families already have about driving, cooking and staying safe at home as loved ones age.
Researchers examined survey responses from nearly 4,500 adults ages 65 and older in seven states: Indiana, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon and Virginia. Participants were asked whether they had firearms in or around their homes and how those guns were stored, according to UW Medicine. The team used questions from the CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to capture self-reported memory issues and household storage practices, drawing on a state-based telephone survey managed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The BRFSS is the survey used in the study.
How the study measured risk
The authors labeled firearms stored unloaded or locked as “more secure” and counted guns that were loaded or unlocked as “unsecured,” according to JAMA Internal Medicine. About one in three respondents reported having a household firearm. Older adults with any cognitive complaints were about as likely as others to own guns, but those whose symptoms were serious enough to interfere with daily activities were nearly 60 percent more likely to report that household firearms were unsecured.
What researchers recommend
“We would want people experiencing symptoms of cognitive decline to be living in homes where firearms are stored more securely than older adults without, but, unfortunately, that is not what we found,” said Kelsey Conrick, the study's first author, in a UW Medicine news release. She and her co-authors recommend that clinicians fold secure-storage counseling into the same routine talks they already have with older patients about driving and home safety, and pair those conversations with distribution of gun-locking devices so that safer choices are easier to put into practice.
Caregivers face legal, logistical hurdles
Qualitative research shows that caregivers often run into obstacles when they try to get firearms out of the home. Retailers, law enforcement and medical providers can be uncertain about whether and how they are allowed to accept guns for temporary safekeeping. That confusion, along with a lack of clear, convenient transfer options, can leave firearms in homes longer than families would prefer, according to peer-reviewed work on firearm access and dementia. PubMed Central documents these legal and logistical barriers and calls for clearer, practical pathways for families.
Local resources and next steps
Seattle-area organizations already offer planning tools and lock-distribution programs for older adults and their caregivers. The University of Washington’s Center for Firearm Injury Prevention maintains research briefs and guidance, and Harborview’s Injury Prevention & Research Center runs planning resources aimed at helping older adults and families manage firearms as cognition changes. UW CFIP and Harborview HIPRC point clinicians and families toward lock programs and practical checklists.
The study was published online Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine. For families in Seattle and beyond, the message is straightforward: start planning early. Conversations about safety, backed up by tools such as gun locks, can lower risk long before anyone is dealing with a crisis.
