Alzheimer's Disease Research Paper

In the picture, there is a brain made out of sand inside an hourglass on a black background that fades down to white. The heading “Alzheimer’s Disease” in big font and all capitalized is above the smaller words “The 5th leading cause of death in adults over 65.” This image comes from the Alzheimer’s Association and can be found on their website. Alzheimer’s disease is a very serious disease of the brain that has more than three million cases per year. I believe the image effectively gets the point across. When I look at it, the image tugs at my emotions. The thought of someone losing their memory to the point of death is very upsetting. The horrible disease affects many older people and their entire families. The person loses all memory of
The disease progresses through time much like sand in an hour glass. The advertisement for awareness shows the seriousness by not using bright colors and keeping all the attention on the hourglass. It starts off mild with problems remembering names and words. In the mild stage, people may lose valuable objects or have trouble remembering things they just read. The moderate stage is the next stage. Forgetfulness of past events or confusion of where they are is in this stage. The person may not be able to remember their own address or phone number, or they may get lost easily. The severe stage is the worst stage. Once they hit this stage, the people with Alzheimer’s disease may forget how to sit, walk, or even swallow. They have problems communicating and need around-the-clock care. At this stage, most of them have live-in nurses or are transferred to a place so that they could have the care they need. The family members have to watch their loved ones go through the entire process. The process of the stages overlap. There is a preclinical stage that only takes place in the brain and is unnoticeable by anyone. The whole onset, after the diagnoses, lasts four to eight years. Even though the average is four to eight years, it could take up to twenty years depending on the seriousness of each stage. The whole process is fast and serious. My grandfather lived through the stages and outlasted the four to eight years. He lived twelve years after
The causes of Alzheimer’s disease could be a number of things. Advancing in age is the greatest risk for Alzheimer’s disease. The older someone gets, the more likely they are to develop the terrible disease. Family history is a risk for it, too. If someone has a person in their family that has Alzheimer’s disease, they are more likely to get it, too. Scientists have also researched that head trauma could also be a contributing factor for the disease. Latinos and African-Americans have a higher rate for vascular diseases, which is also linked to Alzheimer’s disease. In the 1960s and 1970s, scientists thought aluminum was a leading cause for Alzheimer’s disease. Scientists did not confirm aluminum was a cause for the disease, but do not think it is a cause for concern. Research on this has died out, and have begun in other areas such as genetics. Genetics plays a huge roll in many known diseases. The good thing about modern technology is that people can have their genetics tested. The tests would show whether or not Alzheimer’s disease is a possibility in their future. No single test is used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease. Neurologists, psychiatrists, and psychologists all play a part in the diagnoses of the disease. The treatments include medications for memory loss, treatments for behavioral changes, and treatments for sleep changes. None