What is Alzheimer's disease?

Alzheimer's disease, or dementia, is a progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys a person's memory and capacity to reason, make judgments, communicate, and carry out daily activities. As Alzheimer's progresses individuals may experience changes in personality and behavior such as anxiety, suspiciousness, or agitation, and delusions or hallucinations. Although there is presently no outright cure, new treatments for Alzheimer's disease are being found as there are advances in the field of biology.

Early-stage and early-onset Alzheimer's

"Early-stage" refers to the early part of Alzheimer's disease when problems with memory, thinking, and concentration may begin to appear. Individuals in the early-stage usually need minimum support with simple daily routines. However, at the time of diagnosis an individual is not necessarily in the early stage of the disease; he or she may have progressed and display sever symptoms of dementia.

Symptoms of Alzheimer's

Some loss of memory is normal as we grow older, but the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are more than simple lapses in memory. People who suffer from Alzheimer's disease experience problems with communication, learning, thinking, and reasoning severe enough to have an impact on an individuals work, social activities and also put a strain on family life.

The warning signs of Alzheimer's disease:

1. Memory loss- Forgetting recently learned information is one of the most common early symptoms of dementia. This is easy to confuse with general lapses of memory we all suffer from time to time. If forgetfulness increases significantly over a short period of time, it could be a symptom of Alzheimer's

2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks- People with dementia often find it hard to plan or complete everyday tasks. Individuals may forget the steps involved in preparing a meal, playing a game, or even placing a telephone call.

3. Problems with language - People with Alzheimer's disease often forget simple words or alternate odd words, making their speech or writing hard to understand. For example, they may be unable to find the toothbrush and instead ask for "that thing for my mouth.

4. Problems with imaginary thinking. - Someone with Alzheimer's disease may have unusual difficulty performing complex mental tasks, like forgetting what numbers are for and how they should be used.

5. Loss of initiative - A person with Alzheimer's disease may become very inactive, sitting in front of the TV for hours, sleeping more than usual or not wanting to do usual activities, and appearing lazy.

Diagnosis

Ask a doctor when you have concerns about memory loss, thinking skills and behavior changes in yourself or a loved one. For people with dementia and their families, an early diagnosis has many advantages such as:

• Time to make choices that maximize quality of life.
• Less anxiety about the problems involved.
• A better chance of benefiting from treatment of Alzheimer's.
• More time to plan for the future.

Treatment of Alzheimer's

Currently, there is no cure for Alzheimer's. However natural treatments for dementia or Alzheimer's may help with both cognitive and behavioral symptoms. Researchers are looking at new treatments that change the course of the disease and improve the quality of life for people who are suffering from dementia.