What is the Experience of Alzheimer’s?
Imagine waking up one day, you look at your wedding photo, and cannot recognize the name of the girl in the white dress? Or perhaps you get lost in your own house or forget how to tie your own shoes. While this may in fact be the effects of an alcohol induced night in Vegas, more then likely, these are the onset symptoms of the chronic disease known as Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is a potentially fatal form of dementia common among the elderly generation of society aged 65 and above. While there are forms of the disease that develop at much younger ages, this is the most common form. It is the progressive degeneration of brain tissue that destroys cells, causing memory loss, confusion, communication inefficiency, impaired judgment and behavioral changes. However, the most frightening characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease is that everyone is at risk and currently there is no cure.
Currently 10 percent of the population over the age of 65, and 50 percent over the age of 85 has Alzheimer’s. This statistic is shocking and exponentially increasing each day, as more and more people are developing the disease. “The number of Americans over 65 years old who have this form of dementia will grow from 5.1 million today to 13.5 million by 2050” ("Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia"). This in turn is believed to directly effect the economy of the United States health care system in dramatic fashion. With no sign of a cure, and Alzheimer diagnosis’s on the rise, the trajectory health care costs will soar from a mere 172 billion in 2010 to more then 1 trillion by 2050. With the price of health care coverage on the rise, and an increasing unemployment rate, the availability of affordable health care is inexistent. Thus, the importance of educating oneself of diseases such as Alzheimer’s is extremely important. The prevention of a disease can be as simple as reading a book, exercising, or playing an instrument, as is the case with... [continues]
Imagine waking up one day, you look at your wedding photo, and cannot recognize the name of the girl in the white dress? Or perhaps you get lost in your own house or forget how to tie your own shoes. While this may in fact be the effects of an alcohol induced night in Vegas, more then likely, these are the onset symptoms of the chronic disease known as Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s is a potentially fatal form of dementia common among the elderly generation of society aged 65 and above. While there are forms of the disease that develop at much younger ages, this is the most common form. It is the progressive degeneration of brain tissue that destroys cells, causing memory loss, confusion, communication inefficiency, impaired judgment and behavioral changes. However, the most frightening characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease is that everyone is at risk and currently there is no cure.
Currently 10 percent of the population over the age of 65, and 50 percent over the age of 85 has Alzheimer’s. This statistic is shocking and exponentially increasing each day, as more and more people are developing the disease. “The number of Americans over 65 years old who have this form of dementia will grow from 5.1 million today to 13.5 million by 2050” ("Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia"). This in turn is believed to directly effect the economy of the United States health care system in dramatic fashion. With no sign of a cure, and Alzheimer diagnosis’s on the rise, the trajectory health care costs will soar from a mere 172 billion in 2010 to more then 1 trillion by 2050. With the price of health care coverage on the rise, and an increasing unemployment rate, the availability of affordable health care is inexistent. Thus, the importance of educating oneself of diseases such as Alzheimer’s is extremely important. The prevention of a disease can be as simple as reading a book, exercising, or playing an instrument, as is the case with... [continues]
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(2010, 11). What Is the Experience of Alzheimer’s?. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 11, 2010, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/What-Is-The-Experience-Of-Alzheimer-s-471471.html
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"What Is the Experience of Alzheimer’s?." StudyMode.com. 11, 2010. Accessed 11, 2010. http://www.studymode.com/essays/What-Is-The-Experience-Of-Alzheimer-s-471471.html.
