Alzheimer's Disease

When one thinks of Alzheimer's disease, you typically think of an elderly person missing from home. They have wandered off I can't remember where they live. Certainly this is only one aspect of Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease is a form of the brain disorder known as dementia. Alzheimer's disease affects the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. Unfortunately, the scientists still don't know what causes Alzheimer's disease nor is there any cure.

Alzheimer's usually gets after age 60, and the older a person gets, the higher the risk for the disease. There are as many as 5 million Americans who suffer from Alzheimer's. The exact cause of Alzheimer's is still unknown however scientists do know that the risk of Alzheimer's increases with age. Family history is also a risk factor. If you have a grandparent who suffers from Alzheimer's, you are at a greater risk of also impaired the disease.

The early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are sometimes difficult to diagnose. The earliest symptom, is mild forgetfulness. However, since Alzheimer's begins his in later life, mild forgetfulness is normally part of the aging process. So many people with the early stages of Alzheimer's art ever correctly diagnosed. However it later stages, the disease begins to interfere with daily activities. People may forget how to do simple tasks like: their hair or tie their shoes. They also began to have problems speaking reading or writing. In later stages, though suffering from Alzheimer's disease, may become anxious, aggressive, or wander away from home, forgetting where they live.

Unfortunately, at this point, there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease. While it starts out with mild memory problems, he eventually leads to severe brain damage. How fast the disease progresses, can't vary from individual to individual. On average, most patients with Alzheimer's live for about eight to 10 years after their diagnosed. However, some people with Alzheimer's disease live for as many as 20 years with the disease. Modern science is working on a cure for Alzheimer's. There are some medications on the market right now that can't help those in the middle stages of Alzheimer's. However, these medications are very limited to their effects.