Smart Brain Aging Alzheimer’s Prevention Program
Rich Miller
Western Governor’s University
Background Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible, degenerative brain disorder that slowly diminishes memory and thinking skills, eventually destroying the brain’s cognitive ability to carry out even the simplest of tasks. Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. One in three seniors in America dies with Alzheimer’s disease or some other form of dementia. Age is the single biggest risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease. Most people who have Alzheimer’s are age 65 or older. By the time we turn 70, we have a 3-in-10 chance of developing Alzheimer’s or some other form of dementia. Our chances
…show more content…
The cost of caring for those patients is forecast to run more than $1.2 trillion a year, inflation not included. That dollar amount doesn’t begin to reflect the untold amount of human suffering of victims and their families. Simply put, if it isn’t already, Alzheimer’s disease will soon become the public health crisis of our times. Scientists don’t yet fully understand what causes Alzheimer’s disease. But it’s becoming increasingly clear that the disease develops slowly over a long period-of-time due to a complicated series of events that take place in the brain. Researchers say it seems likely the damage starts a decade or more before problems first begin to surface. Even though people are free of symptoms during the pre-clinical stages, toxic changes are taking place in the brain. MRI scans show that the brains of people who are in the first stages of Alzheimer’s disease are forming thick clumps of hard proteins called beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles. The damage quickly spreads to a part of the brain called the hippocampus, which is responsible for forming and storing memories. As the disease progresses, the brain begins to shrink and wither as nerve cells die and nerve connections are lost. By the final stages of Alzheimer’s disease the damage is widespread and brain tissue has atrophied and shrunk significantly and victims are unable to perform even the simplest of tasks. (Alzheimer’s Disease;
However, no one of these explanations alone can explain the disease in full, and none of these theories have been proven (Weiner, 1987). Scientists do know, however, that whatever triggers Alzheimer’s disease begins to damage the brain years before the symptoms appear. Once symptoms do show themselves, the nerve cells that process, store and retrieve information have already begun to die (Alzheimer’s Association, 2005).
The symptoms of Alzheimer’s are extremely detrimental to the individual whom it affects, as the disease attacks the brain cells and their connections. As the illness progresses, many
Alzheimer’s is a disease in the brain that affects a person’s memory, thinking, and behavior. It is the most common form of dementia and is common in adults older than 65. More than five million Americans are being affected by Alzheimer’s at this moment. Alzheimer’s comes in three stages; early, middle, and advanced. The disease is caused by the shrinking of the brain due to many risk factors and genetics.
Alzheimer’s Disease is a form of dementia affecting more than one third of those over ninety-five years old. Its effects vary per person and become systematically more extreme as time wears on. Alzheimer’s is currently incurable and impossible to slow, destroying neurons and brain tissue, resulting in loss of memory, judgment, awareness, communication, behavior and capacity for emotion. Changes in personality and loss of initiative are also common symptoms of Alzheimer’s.
A major devastating and debilitating disease, Alzheimer 's is a public health issue that affects not only the United States but also countries all around the world. In 2010, there were 35.6 million people living with Alzheimer’s. Researchers and medical personnel expect this number to triple by the year 2050. The disease is costing America an exorbitant amount of money and has become a burden on families, caregivers, medical personnel, the healthcare system, and the nation’s economy. If attention is not focused on this major problem, “nursing homes will be overloaded, caregivers will be burned out, healthcare system will be overwhelmed, and federal and state budgets will be overtaxed” (Alzheimer’s Association, 2011).
The clinical manifestation or presentation of Alzheimer’s disease is not the same in every person, although symptoms seem to develop over the same general stages. In most people with Alzheimer’s, symptoms first appear after age 60.
Scientists do not know exactly what causes Alzheimer’s, but scientists say the disease develops a complex series of events that take place in the brain over a long period of time (3). Alzheimer’s is known to cause dementia with older people. Dementia is the loss of thinking, remembering, and reasoning.
What is Alzheimer’s? Many believe they know exactly what it is and how it affects us, but in reality, many don’t realize how deadly it truly is. Alzheimer’s disease is said to be the most common form of dementia (Brandt). It is a disease that slowly kills thinking skills as well as memory and the ability to function properly. The deterioration and changes in the brain, however, can begin anywhere from ten to fifteen years before the signs of memory loss appear (CDC). Changes begin as, abnormal deposits of proteins form amyloid
Alzheimer’s, the most relevant cause of Dementia, is a disease that affects as many as 4.5 million Americans per year (WebMD 2005-2014). Alzheimer’s is a disease that is an irremediable, continuous brain neuron degenerative disease that can be asymptomatic at first and then overtime becomes symptomatic. Alzheimer’s is a gradual disease that advances in three phases: mild, then moderate, and, finally, severe (1). Symptoms appear after the age of 60 and include: the slow destruction of memory and thought processes, and ultimately ends with the absent ability to do normal everyday duties. These symptoms can be anything from forgetting a recent event, or can be as problematic as forgetting the name of a family member. There are many daily
This disease is considered to be the greatest known risk factor for the individuals ages sixty and older. Most of the population affected by the disease with noticeable symptoms are sixty-five and older, with men living approximately 4.2 years after their initial diagnosis, and women approximately 5.7 years after their diagnosis. Alzheimer 's gets increasingly difficult to live with as one ages, and it is ultimately terminal.
It is a gradual neurological disease of the brain that causes irreversible problems with memory, thinking, and behavior. It begins in the part of the brain that affects learning, otherwise known as the hippocampus. Usually these microscopic changes in the brain begin long before the first signs start appearing. Studies have shown that as early as a decade before the first symptoms appear, a person with Alzheimer’s will already be undergoing neurological damage. Although researchers still do not know the exact cause of the disease, they have discovered what happens within the brain when a person is affected with Alzheimer’s. They believe that two different proteins are responsible for the death and damage of nerve cells. Plaques and tangles. Plaques are deposits of a protein fragment called beta- amyloid that build
Because of this, scientists are certain that it is linked to genes. Although the reason why people get Alzheimer’s is not yet known, scientists have been able to identify two main types of nerve damage that seem to cause most of its symptoms. The progression of Alzheimer’s symptoms is organized into three stages: stage 1, mild; stage 2, moderate; and stage 3, severe. Stage 1, or the mild stage, of Alzheimer’s usually lasts two to four years and consists of trouble remembering recently learned information, a lack of energy or drive, language and coordination, and mood swings. In the second stage, memory loss‒such as forgetting details about one’s life‒worsens and begins to interfere with daily life. Stage 2, or the moderate stage, usually lasts two to ten years and consists of difficulties speaking, solving problems, and sleeping, as well as mood swings, delusions, and general confusion. In the third‒and most severe‒stage of Alzheimer’s, patients lost almost all control over their lives. Patients experience major confusion, mood swings, weight loss, hallucinations, inability to remember information, and trouble moving on their own (UCSF, 2015). Since there is currently no cure for
Alzheimer’s is a disease that attacks the nervous system, more specifically, the brain. What Alzheimer’s disease does, is degenerate brain cells, it is a progressive disease which means that it gets worse over time (Alzheimer's Disease Fact Sheet. 2011). Alzheimer’s starts with short term memory loss and eventually can affect the rest of the body, making it harder for the body to function properly, this disease leads to death when in an advanced stage. This Disease currently has no cure (Alzheimer's Disease Fact Sheet. 2011).
Alzheimer’s disease is a very slowly progressive disease that occurs inside the brain in which is characterized by damage of memory. Also this type of disease can lead into interruption in language, problem solving, planning and perception. The chance of a person developing Alzheimer’s disease increases enormously after the age of 70 (Crystal, 2009). Also people who are over the age of 85 have over a 50 percent chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This type of disease is not at all normal in the aging process and is also not something that happens out of no where in a person’s life.
Our textbook backs up this information: “The prevalence increases with age, rising from extremely low rates in the 50s to about half of all people age 85 and older.” (Kail and Cavanaugh, 2016 Ch. 14.4). As someone who has family members on both my maternal and paternal sides, I am very scared for what the future holds, and according to the textbook, I have good reason to be: “As the number of older adults increases rapidly over the next several decades, the number of cases is expected to roughly triple.” (Kail and Cavanaugh, 2016 Ch. 14.4). If the general number without higher risk factors is expected to triple, there is definitely a reason for concern. As of now, there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, and few medications and therapies actually provide better results over time. I believe that with further research, we could not only find out what is causing Alzheimer’s and its increase, but we can also find ways to help those inflicted with this