TODAY marks another opportunity to raise awareness as the world observes World Alzheimer’s day. Alzheimer’s is a disease that affects memory and impairs daily function. According to the South African government, someone develops the disease every 68 seconds. The effects of this disease have earned it the title of a family disease because of the chronic stress a family goes through when witnessing a loved one develop the symptoms.
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The symptoms include increased memory loss and confusion, inability to learn new things, difficulty with language and problems with reading, writing and working with numbers. Also, they can suffer from difficulty in organising thoughts and thinking logically, a shortened attention span, and problems coping with new situations.
The day is about supporting victims and conducting outreaches to educate people about the different stigmas attached to the disease. Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) was launched in 1984 to fuel awareness campaigns. Ten years later, they first established the day to observe the disease. Following this, in 2009, they began issuing yearly reports on Alzheimer’s.
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ADI reported that since the inception of the day, the impact of observance is spreading. However, the information gap and stigmatisation concerning Alzheimer’s remain issues to this day. They said many people see it as a natural part of ageing. The South African government shared the following facts to create awareness:
Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. It accounts for 50 to 80 percent of dementia cases.
Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging. Up to five percent of people with the disease have early-onset Alzheimer’s (also known as younger-onset), which often appears when someone is in their 40s or 50s.
Alzheimer’s worsens over time. Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease, where dementia symptoms gradually worsen over a number of years.
Alzheimer’s has no current cure, but treatments for symptoms are available and research continues.
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