Did you know Alzheimer’s… I forgot what I was going to say. Alzheimer’s disease in not a normal part of aging and attacks the brain’s nerve cells, killing them. There is no cure to Alzheimer’s and it ends in death because of aging, genes, and other diseases. People around the world experience mood changes and forgetfulness that affects their daily life. Alzheimer’s disease ruins and ultimately ends millions of lives, so knowledge of the disease, causes, prevention, and treatment, and the effects of symptoms is important for people to realize what is happening to them, their loved ones, and the people around them.

Alzheimer’s disease ruins and ultimately ends millions of lives, so knowledge of the disease is important for people to realize what is happening to them, their loved ones, and the people around them. Alzheimer’s disease is an abnormal, progressive, degenerative disorder that attacks the brain’s nerve cells and breaks connections with other nerve cells and die (“About”). In 1906, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, a German physician, presented a case of a 51 year old woman’s brain (“About”). Her brain autopsy identified the plaques and tangles in her brain today know as Alzheimer’s disease (“About”). Alzheimer’s is the 60 percent most common cause of dementia in people 65 and older (“About”). Individuals with Alzheimer’s “live on average for eight to 10 years from diagnosis”, but the “disease typically progresses over two to 20 years” (“About”). The two types of the Alzheimer’s are sporadic Alzheimer's disease and familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD) (“About”). FAD follows an obvious inheritance pattern, but it is very rare (“About”). When FAD does occur it is usually in people between the ages of 30 and 60 (“About”). Besides knowing what the disease is, it is also very important to know the causes, prevention, and treatments to be aware of.



Alzheimer’s disease ruins and ultimately ends millions of lives, so knowledge of causes, prevention, and treatment is important for people to realize what is happening to them, their loved ones, and the people around them. Alzheimer’s disease is caused mainly by aging (“About”). After age 65, the chance of getting Alzheimer’s doubles every five years (Nordqvist). Surprisingly, only seven percent of cases are caused by genes and women are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s because of their longer life expectancy (Nordqvist). Other causes are head injuries, academic level, heart disease, obesity, strokes, depression, and Down’s syndrome because of the extra copy of chromosome 21, a protein found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s (Nordqvist). Lesions, or a region that has suffered damage, include beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles (“About”). Beta-amyloid plaques are sticky clumps of protein fragments and cellular material that form outside and around neurons while neurofibrillary tangles are insoluble twisted fibers composed largely of the protein tau, stabilizers found in neurons, which builds up inside nerve cells (“About”). It is unknown if these lesions are the cause or product of Alzheimer’s. The only way Alzheimer’s can be prevented is by leading an active lifestyle by doing yard work, gardening, dancing, riding a bike, and any type of aerobic exercise (Nordqvist). This slows the progression of Alzheimer’s and lowers the risk of developing it. There is no cure to Alzheimer’s, but medications can slow progression and improve signs and symptoms (“About”). Examples are memantine and insulin which help protect against damage to brain cells, cholinesterase inhibitors improve levels of neurotransmitters (transmits neurologic information from one cell to another) in the brain, and stem cells raise hope of a cure because they rescue memory in mice (Nordqvist). After learning the causes, prevention, and treatment of Alzheimer’s, people should know the symptoms and how it will affect them or their loved ones to know what to expect.

Alzheimer’s disease ruins and ultimately ends millions of lives, so knowledge of the effects of symptoms is important for people to realize what is happening to them, their loved ones, and the people around them. In America, 2.4 to 4.5 million people and 417,000 people in the United Kingdom suffer from Alzheimer’s, based on the Alzheimer’s society (Nordqvist). Alzheimer’s causes loss of memory and smell, thinking and language skills, behavioral changes, and finally complete helplessness (“About”). In the first stages of Alzheimer’s the symptoms will barely be noticed, but in the second stage symptoms become more noticeable such as difficulty with everyday functions, mood changes, and difficulty retaining things (Nordqvist). The third stage causes distance and denial, while the fourth stage becomes more serious with confusion and the inability to be independent (Nordqvist). In the fifth stage the person becomes aggressive, suspicious, disturbed, and repetitive (Nordqvist). In the final stage, the body and abilities fail. Alzheimer’s causes people to shy away from favored activities and hobbies and become forgetful (Nordqvist). This forgetfulness affects people at home and mainly at work and causes people to take longer to get things done. People can also lose relationships that were once important because of mood changes. “It is estimated that one to four family members act as caregivers for an individual with Alzheimer's disease” (“About”).This proves that Alzheimer’s doesn’t only affect the people that have it; it also affects the people around them. The effects of Alzheimer’s on people is only part of knowing the disease and all the aspects of it.
Knowledge of Alzheimer’s disease, causes, prevention, and treatment, and the effects of symptoms is crucial for people to be prepared and know how to stay healthy as long as possible. Alzheimer’s disease was discovered by Alois Alzheimer in 1906. Living an active lifestyle helps prevent and slow Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s causes loss of memory and smell, thinking and language skills, behavioral changes, and finally complete helplessness. Alzheimer’s disease has no cure and affects people in their everyday lives constantly by slowly causing death.

















Works Cited
About Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. 2013. Alzheimer's Foundation
of America Website. 4 Feb 2013
<http://www.alzfdn.org/AboutAlzheimers/definition.html>.
Nordqvist, Christian. What Is Alzheimer's Disease?. Medical News Today. 10th
December 2012. Medical News Today. 5 Feb 2013
<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159442.php>.