The Importance of Alternative Therapies in Dementia

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Although no therapy has been found to reverse dementia, it is possible to slow the course and improve the quality of life for those battling with the disease. Here are some therapies that have been known to slow the decline of dementia

Pet Therapy:
As many pet owners will attest, just being around an animal can have a soothing effect. This is the idea behind pet therapy for people with dementias such as Alzheimer's disease, who are at particular risk for anxiety and depression. In this kind of therapy, the pet's human companion introduces the animal -- whether it's a dog, cat, guinea pig, or other domestic pet -- to the person with Alzheimer's and helps the interaction go smoothly and safely. These visits generally occur in nursing homes, adult day centers, and hospitals, but of course the idea can be used in the home as well.

The benefits of pet therapy include lowering anxiety and stress, encouraging communication, improving mood, and lowering blood pressure. People with a dementia like Alzheimer's may feel especially comfortable with a pet because it lets them interact nonverbally.

What you can do: The person you're caring for probably isn't capable of looking after a pet, so it's not a good idea to run out and buy her a kitten unless someone is available around the clock to provide its care. But even pet therapy that doesn't involve direct contact with pets -- bird-watching and looking at an aquarium -- seems to have positive effects. Research funded by the Pet Care Trust, a nonprofit foundation, and conducted by Purdue University, found that Alzheimer's patients provided with aquariums gained weight (indicating better nutritional intake -- people with Alzheimer's often have trouble eating adequately) and showed less aggression. Try setting up an aquarium or bird feeders outside a favorite window view.

Spiritual Activities:
Whether spiritual activities include prayer, religious services, or visits with someone who offers faith-based counsel, they have a therapeutic effect on many people with Alzheimer's disease. Spirituality and faith offer stress relief, hope, and reassurance. Some studies have found that people with probable Alzheimer's who have higher levels of religiosity show slower rates of mental decline.

What's more, religious participation usually involves regular events, rituals, or traditions. Repeated over the years, these memories tend to be wired more fixedly in the brain of someone with Alzheimer's. That's why someone with Alzheimer's may find religious or spiritual activities comforting and easy to follow. These activities also offer an opportunity to socialize and bond with family, friends, and members of the community.

What you can do: Make provisions for the person in your care to continue attending her routine religious services as long as possible. If her behavior is erratic and sometimes disruptive, see if a "quiet room" is available. (Usually used by mothers of young children, this spot is helpful for people with Alzheimer's, too.) Try going to early or midweek services where attendance is lightest.

Consider other things that may nourish her spirituality, too. For some people, that's a walk in the woods, looking up at the night sky, listening to classical music, or meditation.

Music Therapy:
If you've ever found yourself singing a pop song you haven't heard since high school -- and knowing the lyrics -- you have some idea of the power of musical memory. Someone with Alzheimer's might not remember breakfast, yet the lyrics of old favorites from 50 or 60 years ago may be at the tip of her tongue.

Listening to familiar music is both enjoyable and comforting. It can relieve stress and anxiety and improve mood. People with Alzheimer's often "open up" and start to clap and sing along. In group settings, music may prompt listeners to reminisce about their past and interact with one another. At music therapy programs in adult daycare or assisted living facilities, caregivers may arrange live performances or music with dancing, which has the added benefit of encouraging exercise.

What you can do: Select music carefully, and stick to what you know your loved one likes and enjoys. (If you're not sure, look for CDs or old LPs of tunes from her 20s and 30s, when almost everyone is most attuned to popular music. You may even be able to borrow some from the library to try them out.) Playing music during meals may improve appetite, and calmer music played before bedtime may help her get to sleep more easily and agreeably.

Some people with Alzheimer's enjoy making music. Many children's musical toys are appropriate without seeming juvenile, so look for maracas, tambourines, xylophones, or toy lap harps (zither) that offer easy-to-follow music sheets or can simply be plucked when she can no longer follow the written notes.

Art Therapy:
Both viewing and creating works of art can be therapeutic. Walking through a museum or gallery is a great way to relax a person with Alzheimer's disease while providing some exercise. Talking about certain pieces with a companion or a group on a special tour gives her a chance to converse about something in the moment without worrying about failing to remember names or facts. (And art interpretation, after all, is up to the individual, so there's also a freedom of expression.) This, in turn, can be a huge mood booster and way to increase self-esteem.

Working on an art project can help release emotions in a safe, healthy way. If done in a group setting, art also generates conversation and encourages bonding among participants. Using different tools, a person with Alzheimer's practices hand-eye coordination: If fine motor skills are declining and painting or drawing is difficult, she may enjoy the tactile work of sculpting or simply painting with a larger brush.

What you can do: Don't worry if the person you're caring for was never very "artsy." Provide safe, nontoxic, easy-to-use materials and encourage her to spend time with them. (Even crayons and pages torn from coloring books work. Offer adult coloring books or nonjuvenile images if she's sensitive to this.) If you're unsure how to proceed on your own, look into adult daycare programs, where art therapy is often used and attendees enjoy feeling like they're learning a skill or creating something.

Visit your local museum together often. Weekday mornings are least likely to be crowded. Between the large collections and her short-term memory, this is one outing that can seem new every time for quite a long while.

Storytelling:
Storytelling is another therapy that taps into creativity. A caregiver or other companion presents the patient with a picture or series of pictures and invites her to construct a corresponding storyline. As in art therapy, communicating about an image doesn't require remembering anything, which can be an intimidating and uncomfortable aspect of other conversations. Storytelling exercises creativity, gives emotional release, and provides caregivers with interesting insights into the life and mind of the person with Alzheimer's.

In storytelling therapy, as in art therapy, the key is letting the person with Alzheimer's take the lead once the activity is introduced. The companion simply helps the story along by asking basic open-ended questions. Sometimes the story is written down.

What you can do: Find a coffee-table book with large images. At a relaxing, quiet time, when there are no distractions to interrupt or confuse your family member, sit down with her and look at the book together. You can also use postcards, calendar images, or a magazine. (Avoid celebrity or historic photos, which cause the person to get stuck trying to remember the "right" details.) Say, "Let's make up a story about this funny picture," or "I wonder what she's thinking about. What do you think?" Avoid asking questions that might feel like tests. ("What's that?") Stress the fact that there are no right or wrong answers. Offer open-ended prompts to help move the story along.

Reminiscence Therapy:
Different from storytelling, which doesn't specifically involve memories, reminiscence therapy invites a person with Alzheimer's to exercise her long-term memory by encouraging her to share positive recollections from younger days. Especially in the earlier stages of the disease, she may still remember with astonishing clarity events and people from childhood and young adulthood. Old photo albums, mementos, and music are common tools used to generate this type of conversation.

Focusing conversations on these more solid memories can improve her mood, encourage verbalization, and raise self-esteem.

* What you can do: Keep the atmosphere relaxed so she doesn't feel like she's being given a memory quiz. When children and grandchildren are involved as listeners, a person with Alzheimer's may feel especially proud to be able to share pieces of family history. As a bonus, you may learn things about her you didn't know or may be moved to record new and familiar tales on tape or paper to preserve them.

Massage Therapy:
Perhaps one of the most unexpected therapies for someone with Alzheimer's disease is massage therapy. In all people, the healing power of touch is well documented. It can trigger the relaxation response, lower blood pressure, and reduce the pain of chronic diseases. Few studies have been done on massage for Alzheimer's patients, but so far it's been found to reduce episodes of wandering and other agitated behaviors associated with anxiety. Massage can also help people with the disease sleep better, ease muscle pain and tightness, and ward off depression. Massage therapy is sometimes combined with aromatherapy (see below).

What you can do: Ask the person you're caring for if she'd like to try it. Someone who's apprehensive or has never had massage may want to start with hand, foot, or back rubs. Massage therapy only works when the person feels at ease with it. She may be very sensitive to touch or may feel uncomfortable with a stranger or even a family member touching her in this way. Be sure that if you hire a professional massage therapist, she knows that her client has dementia. Realize that you don't have to sign her up for a full body massage in order to harness the benefits of the power of touch: Hug her, hold hands, touch her gently when you talk to her.

Aromatherapy:
The use of essential oils from flowers and other plants to treat physical and mental disorders has a long history dating back thousands of years. Certain scents appear to work directly on connections in the brain to create associated responses. Scented oils can be applied directly to the skin (in diluted form) during massage, burned to release their scent into the air, or placed in bathwater. Some nursing facilities use aromatherapy to calm residents. This therapy hasn't been well studied with Alzheimer's, and as the disease progresses the sense of smell is often impaired, so it's unclear whether people with advanced Alzheimer's can benefit from it.

What you can do: The relaxing and stimulating powers of scents may be worth trying at home if you find the idea appealing. Even familiar scents like chocolate chip cookies or pine needles can trigger happy memories

Another promising finding in the fight against Alzheimer's

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sify news

Scientists have discovered a new target for the prevention of adverse immune responses, which have been identified as factors in the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

The discovery was made by researchers at the University of South Florida's Department of Psychiatry and the Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair.

The CD45 molecule is a receptor on the surface of the brain's microglia cells, cells that support the brain's neurons and also participate in brain immune responses.

Previous studies by the USF researchers showed that triggering CD45 was beneficial because it blocked a very early step in the development of Alzheimer's disease. In the present study, the researchers demonstrated in Alzheimer's mouse models that a loss of CD45 led to dramatically increased microglial inflammation.

Although the brain's immune response is involved in Alzheimer's disease pathology, "this finding suggests that CD45 on brain immune cells appears critically involved in dampening harmful inflammation," said study senior author Jun Tan, a professor of psychiatry and Robert A. Silver chair at the Rashid Laboratory for Developmental Neurobiology, USF Silver Child Development Center and research biologist for Research and Development Service at the James A. Haley Veteran's Hospital.

The investigators also found an increase in harmful neurotoxins, such as A beta peptides, as well as neuron loss in the brains of the test mice.

"In short, CD45 deficiency leads to increased accumulation of neurotoxic A beta in the brains of old Alzheimer's mice, demonstrating the involvement of CD45 in clearing those toxins and protecting neurons," Dr. Tan said. "These findings are quite significant, because many in the field have long considered CD45 to be an indicator of harmful inflammation. So, researchers assumed that CD45 was part of the problem, not a potential protective factor."

The next step is to apply these findings to develop new Alzheimer's disease treatments, said Paula Bickford, PhD, a professor in the USF Department of Neurosurgery and senior career research scientist at the James A. Haley Veteran's Hospital.

"We are already working with Natura Therapeutics, Inc. to screen for natural compounds that will target CD45 activation in the brain's immune cells," Dr. Bickford said.

The findings are published online in the Journal of Neuroscience. (ANI)

Could Alzheimer's start as brain microbleed (part 2)

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HealthDay News

Amanda Chan

Origins of Microbleeds

Past studies have established that microbleeds are not a predictive sign of Alzheimer's disease, and their root cause is still unknown. But researchers know they are evidence of very small ruptures in the brain's blood vessels, Van der Flier said.

There are two ways microbleeds could occur. The first is that some risk factors — such as smoking, diabetes or hypertension — deprive the brain's blood vessels of oxygen, causing them to stiffen and increasing their likelihood of tearing, he said.

Microbleeds could also crop up from deposits of amyloid beta proteins — long thought to be at work in Alzheimer's — gathering in vessel walls. The protein buildup damages the vessels, spurring microbleeds, he said.

Researchers have long known that blood vessel damage is common among Alzheimer's patients. And past studies have shown that people with high blood pressure, blood vessel disorders and those who've suffered strokes are at an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, said Maria C. Carrillo, senior director of Medical and Scientific Relations at the Alzheimer's Association, who was not involved with the study.

There is not yet enough evidence to say that microbleeds are associated with Alzheimer's disease, but they are a sign of vascular damage that could contribute to the disease, she said.

Gateway to personalized medicine

The review shows that the cause of Alzheimer's isn't necessarily the same for everyone, Carrillo said.

"It's a perfect storm building up over time, and the contributors to that storm are different because everyone is different — including genetics, lifestyle — all those things combined," Carrillo told MyHealthNewsDaily. "They make your risk factors different from mine."

And if Alzheimer's has multiple causes, the disease might be managed more effectively taking that into consideration, rather than treating it in a one-size-fits-all way, she said.

"[A microbleed] could be a contributor in some people, and in others it's not," Carrillo said. "So we can't look at it as the only cause, but it's important to see what its role is in people who actually have one."

Could Alzheimer's start as a brain microbleed?

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HealthDay News

Amanda Chan

Brain microbleeds, stemming from tiny, ruptured blood vessels, might help explain how blood vessel damage and amyloid plaque buildup work together to cause Alzheimer's disease, a new review of studies suggests.

Microbleeds, which have long been perceived as harmless and irrelevant in disease development, were found in 23 percent of patients with Alzheimer's disease in the review of five studies. A previous study showed that 6.5 percent of healthy 45- to 50-year-olds have microbleeds, whereas 35.7 percent of people 80 and older have them.



Though that percentage is not high, it shows that blood vessel damage is occurring in some people with the disease, said study researcher Wiesje van der Flier, of Visje University Medical Centre in Amsterdam.

Many researchers agree that Alzheimer's disease is associated with both blood vessel damage and the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain, he said. This new review found that microbleeds could be a link between the causes.

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.."We now proposed that microbleeds are an example of amyloid pathology meets vascular [blood vessel] damage," because they represent blood vessel damage that occurs simultaneously with Alzheimer's disease, van der Flier told MyHealthNewsDaily.

The study was published online in the journal Brain: A Journal of Neurology.

How toxic molecules interact in Alzheimer's

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ANI


Researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio have identified the second molecule in Alzheimer's toxic duo.

Like two unruly boys who need to be split up in class, a pair of protein molecules works together to speed up the toxic events of Alzheimer's disease.

But the new discovery could lead to drugs that disrupt the interaction, and thereby block or slow Alzheimer's onset or progression.

Alzheimer's disease is an irreversible, progressive brain disease marked by deterioration of nerve cells and eventual complete loss of cognitive functioning - thinking, memory and reason.

Many Alzheimer's patients have brain lesions called amyloid plaques, which consist of protein fragments called amyloid-beta.

Small aggregates of amyloid-beta are thought to contribute prominently to the degeneration of brain cells in Alzheimer's.

The new discovery involves an amyloid-beta fragment called AICD.

Scientists have known that AICD controls expression of genes that contribute to Alzheimer's, but how it did so was unclear - until now.

"We discovered a protein molecule that communicates with AICD to turn on target genes," said Thomas G. Boyer, professor of molecular medicine at the Health Science Center.

"We hope to exploit this knowledge to identify compounds or drugs that can disrupt these signals, leading to a novel and effective treatment for this disease," he added.

While several drugs can temporarily slow worsening symptoms, no treatment is currently available to slow or stop the degeneration of nerve cells that lies at the root of the disease. (ANI)

Nutrient Biomarkers May Be Key In Alzheimer’s Prevention

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Personal Liberty Digest

Researchers at Oregon State University believe that detecting nutrient biomarkers in people with Alzheimer's may be an important step in developing treatment and prevention methods for the disease.

Scientists have suspected a link between the disorder and nutrition. However, accurate data is hard to find since it currently depends on a patient's recall of what they've eaten and also does not take into account how differently an elderly person's body may absorb nutrients.

"The gold standard to assess nutritional status should be biomarkers based on blood tests," said Emily Ho, co-author of the study.

As researchers begin to understand which populations are at risk for Alzheimer's disease, they improve their chances of developing prevention strategies. Additionally, with an accurate read of an individual's nutritional level, scientists can obtain better knowledge of how supplements and deficiencies affect a person's odds of getting the disorder.

For the study, researchers asked 38 elderly volunteers about their daily eating habits. Half of the participants had good memory and the others had a cognitive deficit. When compared to a nutritional assessment via a blood test, results showed that only those with intact memories gave reliable information.

Understanding the role of inheritance in Alzheimer's disease

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Alzheimer's Association

new collaboration called the International Genomics of Alzheimer's Project (IGAP) has been launched to discover and map all the genes that contribute to Alzheimer's disease. The innovative effort, spanning universities from both Europe and the United States, will combine the knowledge, staff and resources of four groups that currently conduct research on Alzheimer genetics:
The European Alzheimer's Disease Initiative at the Institute Pasteur de Lille and Lille University (France)


The Alzheimer's Disease Genetics Consortium at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (United States)


The Genetic and Environmental Risk in Alzheimer's Disease at Cardiff University (United Kingdom).


The neurology subgroup of the Cohorts for Heart and Aging in Genomic Epidemiology at Boston University (United States)


The skyrocketing prevalence and cost of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias will soon undermine the delivery of healthcare worldwide. That gives innovative collaborations like this new international genomics project added incentive to act quickly and boldly to make new discoveries.
Identification of genes that contribute to Alzheimer risk and that influence the progression of disease will help lead us to the causes of the disease, identify new targets for drug development and provide methods for determining which people are at greatest risk for Alzheimer's. By working together, the four groups can amass a large enough group of participants to accelerate gene discovery. Formation of IGAP creates a shared resource database that includes genetic data for the more than 40,000 individuals.

ALZHEIMER'S ASSOCIATION INVOLVEMENT
The formation of IGAP is funded by the Alzheimer's Association and the Fondation Plan Alzheimer.
"We're pleased to fund this project that will bring together well-established and highly regarded research groups throughout the world to enable an unprecedented sharing and analysis of Alzheimer genetic data," said William Thies, Ph.D., Alzheimer's Association chief medical and scientific officer.
IGAP expects to present its first findings at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease (AAICAD) in Paris, July 16-21, 2011.

Why the National Alzheimer's Project Act is Important

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Alzheimer's communityAlzheimer's Association


Friends of the National Alzheimer's Project Act(NAPA) was created to convey the broad, deep and united support for NAPA's swift, successful implementation. Organizations participated in an introductory meeting on January 21, 2011, where the discussion included key reasons why NAPA is important not just for the Alzheimer's community but for the nation as a whole. More than 30 of these same organizations joined together in signing on to the first Friends of NAPA advertisement, which will run in the Washington Post on Sunday, February 6th – the date of President Ronald Reagan’s Centennial. The advertisement will also run the next day, February 7, in the Capitol Hill newspapers: Politico, Roll Call and The Hill. On an on-going basis, we will seek input from key stakeholder groups and convene meetings to build as broad a movement as possible. If you represent an organization that may wish to participate in Friends of NAPA, contact us.

Thank you for your interest in NAPA and advancing the nation's efforts to overcome this disease.

How baby boomers are affected by Alzheimer's disease (part 5)

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Alzheimer's Association


The federal government currently spends much less
money on Alzheimer research, prevention and a
cure than on other conditions such as cancer, heart
disease and HIV — $6 billion for cancer, $4 billion
for heart disease, $3 billion for HIV/AIDS. But just
$480 million for Alzheimer’s disease.
The consequences are plain to see.
America has made progress against cancer,
heart disease and HIV because of the federal
government’s commitment to combat them.
We can achieve the same results for Alzheimer’s
disease with a similar commitment to finding a
cure. With such a commitment by the federal
government, we can find ways to prevent, control
and cure this heartbreaking disease.
“I began to realize I wasn’t the gal
I used to be. It was different inside
my head. I would be talking with
someone on the telephone, then
hang up and ask myself, ‘Who was
that? What did we talk about?’
My husband says he was shocked and
knew something serious was going
on when we returned from a vacation
together, and I told him, ‘I really
had a great time in California. I’m so
sorry you couldn’t make it.’ ”
— Mary Ann Becklenberg, Indiana
If you think finding
a cure is expensive,
consider the cost facing
people living with the
disease and those taking
care of them. We’ve already seen the consequences of
underfunding. But there’s more: we are at risk of
losing a generation of scientists who are either
choosing other fields or leaving research altogether.
These brilliant minds are our greatest resource in
this fight, and we should be applying them to our
most difficult problems.

Alzheimer’s Disease Research: Genuine, Tangible, Hope
Despite the relatively low level of funding,
Alzheimer’s disease research has come so
far, particularly in the last 10 years. With the
cooperation of the medical and research
communities, we are at a tipping point. We have
the ideas, the technology and the will, but we do
not have the commitment from the federal
government. And we have reason for genuine and
tangible hope that will fundamentally change the
nature of the disease.
Every day brings us closer to a cure. An additional
commitment through a public-private partnership
could push us over the edge, make the difference
and deliver the results.
14
Scientists believe we
are at a tipping point
right now.
A commitment to a thorough, heartfelt and
innovative approach to finding results will give
us significant returns on our investment, relief to
those currently suffering from the disease and
peace of mind to millions of baby boomers who will
otherwise get the disease. And we can do it without
the government increasing its deficit. It’s how and
where the government spends that matters.
We should not and cannot forget or neglect those
who have this devastating and heartbreaking
disease today or who will get the disease tomorrow.
They need better care and better support services.
And their struggling, loving families need more help.
For the first time in history, there is real hope
in emerging science that we can overcome
Alzheimer’s disease and that the day is near when
Alzheimer’s does not need to be a death sentence

How baby boomers are affected by Alzheimer's disease (part 4)

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Alzheimer's Association

Alzheimer’s doesn’t just affect those with the
disease. The toll Alzheimer’s takes on caregivers is
a burden financially, physically and emotionally. Just
imagine the tragedy of watching your loved one, the
light of your life, slowly disappearing day by day.
Yes, the financial cost — the cost of providing care
for a loved one — is significant and often beyond
what is affordable. And the hidden costs, the
sacrifices that have to be made by the caregiver,
are just as immense.
But this is nothing next to the human cost, the
toll Alzheimer’s takes each and every day: lost jobs,
lost savings, poor health, even lost lives due to
the economic, emotional and personal strain
caregivers endure.
8
It’s not just the people
with Alzheimer’s
who suffer. It’s also
their caregivers.
“She’d throw temper tantrums at the
dinner table, scream at me, take my
toys or bang on glass mirrors trying to
figure out why her reflection wouldn’t
answer her. My grandma’s behavior
was sometimes so bad, it was as if she
were the child, even though she was
70 years older than me. As a young
girl, sometimes I wasn’t sure if her
behavior was her actual personality
or if it was Alzheimer’s that made
her be mean to me and steal my
Beanie Babies.”
— Alissa Anderegg, California
9
• In 2009, nearly 11 million Americans
provided 12.5 billion hours of unpaid care
to family members and friends with
Alzheimer’s disease.
• The value of this unpaid care totaled almost
$144 billion in 2009 — more than what
Medicare and Medicaid spent combined on
those with Alzheimer’s.
• One--third of Alzheimer caregivers have been
providing care for five years or more.
• Two-thirds of Alzheimer caregivers rate the
emotional stress as high or very high.
• Alzheimer caregiving negatively affects
health, employment, income and financial
security.

Today, America spends $172 billion caring for
people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias.
With the aging of the baby boomers, Alzheimer’s
could bring this country to its financial knees.
Costs will reach over $1 trillion in 2050 — and
that’s not counting inflation.
Almost half of all Alzheimer costs are paid by
Medicare, where more than one in every six
Medicare dollars is spent on someone with
Alzheimer’s disease. Curing Alzheimer’s would
help save Medicare.

“Since her diagnosis, my mother has
steadily progressed and is no longer
able to carry out simple tasks, such
as washing dishes or putting on her
own shoes. Recently, she has started
using a cane to walk, and I find it
hard to imagine the day when she
will no longer be able to walk at all,
feed herself or even recognize who
I am. Yet I know that such a day
will come.”
— Xuan Quach, California
We are going to pay for
Alzheimer’s one way
or the other — now
or later.

We are going to pay for Alzheimer’s one way or
the other. The consequences of doing nothing will
be continuing to pay for caring — and we should
ensure more effective care for those with this
devastating disease. But if we commit now to
curing — to fund research that leads to a
breakthrough — we can save billions of dollars.

A commitment today to innovation, to finding a cure,
will yield the savings of tomorrow.

How baby boomers are affected by Alzheimer's disease (part 3)

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Alzheimer's Association

• An individual will live with the increasingly
devastating, debilitating and destructive
effects of Alzheimer’s for many years.
• Most people survive an average of four to
six years after a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s —
but many live for as long as 20 years with
the disease.
• On average, 40 percent of a person’s years
with Alzheimer’s are spent in the most severe
stage of the disease — longer than any
other stage.
• By age 80, 4 percent of Americans enter a
nursing home. For people with Alzheimer’s,
75 percent end up in a nursing home by
age 80.

The Truth about Alzheimer’s that Every American Should Know

Alzheimer’s Kills
Right now, we are losing the battle against
Alzheimer’s disease. Death rates for other major
diseases — HIV, stroke, heart disease, prostate
cancer, breast cancer — are declining. Our
country’s significant commitment to combat
these conditions has saved lives.

But for Alzheimer’s disease, the federal
government’s efforts have been meager, and
deaths are skyrocketing. The consequence is
that over 80,000 Americans die each year of
Alzheimer’s — but only after a very long good-bye,
only after years of suffering endured by individuals,
family and friends. Today, there are no Alzheimer
survivors — none.

Alzheimer’s is not just
a little memory loss.
It eventually kills,
but not before it takes
everything away.
“Dawn is coming. The sun will rise
and peak. I now know my mother
never will rise again. But still, every
morning when the sun comes, I think
maybe this will be the day she will
know me. This will be the day I can
tell her one last time that I love her,
and she’ll hear me. But in my heart,
I know it’s over.”
— Rob George, Texas

America means progress, solutions, results. But,
Alzheimer’s disease — the sixth-leading cause of
death in America — remains the only one of the
top 10 causes of death without an identified way to
prevent it, cure it or slow its progression.
As the baby boomers begin reaching age 65,
this means more deaths from Alzheimer’s, more
heartbreak. As the Baby Boom Generation ages,
the situation is only going to deteriorate — as
horribly as the disease itself — unless and until we
demand a cure.

How baby boomers are affected by Alzheimer's disease (part 2)

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Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care professionals to get an easyceu or two

Here are more interesting dementia brain boosting activities

Alzheimer's Association

By 2030, the U.S. population aged 65 and over is
expected to double, meaning there will be more and
more Americans with Alzheimer’s — as many as
16 million by mid-century, when there will be nearly
1 million new cases every year.
One in eight baby boomers will get the disease after
they turn 65. At age 85 that risk increases to nearly
one in two. And if they don’t have it, chances are
they will likely be caring for someone who does.
For many baby boomers, Alzheimer’s was a disease
they saw in their parents or grandparents. Not
anymore. Alzheimer’s disease is now their disease,
their crisis, their epidemic.

The Truth about Alzheimer’s that Every American Should Know

Alzheimer’s disease is not just a little memory
loss. It eventually kills you, but not before it takes
everything away — slowly, gradually,
painstakingly, inevitably.

This devastating, deteriorating and debilitating
disease is the ultimate thief — thief of memories,
thief of independence, thief of control, thief of time
and ultimately thief of life. Alzheimer’s robs people
of all bodily functions and eventually their humanity.
Day by day, Alzheimer’s strips away individuality,
autonomy and independence. It means the loss of
anything and everything you have ever known.

Try to imagine not being able to take care
of yourself.
Can’t dress yourself.
Can’t shower yourself.
Can’t go to the bathroom by yourself.
That’s Alzheimer’s disease.
“She has become fascinated with
‘the lady in the mirror.’

At first, she
didn’t recognize this lady as her own
reflection. It scared her that ‘the lady’
was mocking her by following her
around and imitating everything
she did.”
— Eugene Fields, Ohio

Try to imagine not
being able to take care
of yourself.

How baby boomers are affected by Alzheimer's disease

Here is a great dementia resource for caregivers and healthcare professinals,

Here is information on being the best caregiver you can be

Here is a way for nurses administrators, social workers and other health care professionals to get an easyceu or two

Here are more interesting dementia brain boosting activities

Alzheimer's Association

This year, the first baby boomers turn 65 —
when the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease
significantly increases. While Alzheimer’s is not
normal aging, age is the greatest risk factor for
the disease.

This means baby boomers are its next target.
With the first wave of baby boomers reaching age
65, there is an impending wave of new cases and
new families that will have to face the devastating,
deteriorating, debilitating and heartbreaking
disease known as Alzheimer’s — a progressive
and fatal brain disorder that causes problems with
memory, thinking and behavior.

Eventually, Alzheimer’s kills, but not before it takes
everything away from you. It steals a person’s
memories, judgment and independence. It robs
spouses of lifetime companions and children of
parents and grandparents. It destroys the security
of families and depletes millions of dollars annually
from family and government budgets.

It is expected an estimated 10 million baby boomers
will develop Alzheimer’s. Of those who reach
the age of 85, nearly one in two will get it. And
because there is no way to prevent, cure or even
slow the progression of the disease, every one of
these 10 million baby boomers will either die with
Alzheimer’s or from it.

And it’s not just the person with Alzheimer’s
who suffers — it’s also the caregivers. Caring
for someone with Alzheimer’s disease negatively
affects the caregiver’s health, employment, income
and financial security. But that is nothing compared
to the human cost — the toll it takes watching a
loved one slowly disappear.

Unless we find a treatment or a cure, Alzheimer’s
will become the defining disease of the Baby Boom
Generation. They will be Generation Alzheimer’s.
Introduction
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