In November, 1983, President Ronald Reagan designated November as National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month.  At that time, less than 2 million Americans had Alzheimer’s.  According to the annual report released by the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 6 million people in the United States are now affected by this disease. https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/facts-figures 

Alzheimer’s is a disease that first effects the part of the brain associated with learning, so early symptoms often include changes in memory, thinking and reasoning skills.   

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, but not everyone with dementia has Alzheimer’s disease.  Dementia is not a disease, but a syndrome that describes symptoms that impact memory, performance of daily activities and communication abilities.  Early detection is vital as it may take years of testing to determine whether the symptoms are signs of normal aging, a form of dementia or caused by Alzheimer’s. https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/difference-between-dementia-and-alzheimer-s 

 

Alzheimer's is a cause of dementia. 

Alzheimer’s changes the whole brain.  The disease leads to nerve cell death and tissue loss throughout the brain.  Over time, the brain shrinks dramatically, affecting nearly all of its functions.  Women, Black Americans, and Hispanics/Latinos are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s, but less likely to be diagnosed in a timely manner.  Age is the biggest risk factor and affects people over 65.  A person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease doubles about every five years.  There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, but there are activities you can do to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s: 

  • Physical activity. Doing regular physical activity is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of dementia. … 

  • Eating healthily. … 

  • Don’t smoke. … 

  • Drink less alcohol. … 

  • Stay mentally and socially active. … 

  • Take control of your health. 

 

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/alzheimers-dementia-aging/preventing-alzheimers-disease.htm 

https://www.humangood.org/resources/senior-living-blog/top-ten-ways-to-prevent-alzheimers-disease 

 

For additional information, go to our home page @ www.dcls.org  

Then go to:  

 

My Library 
RESEARCH & RESOURCES 

 

Health & Human Services 

The Health tools available include:  

MedlinePlus- contains information to help answer health questions related to health issues, medication, the latest health news, etc. 

Health & Wellness Resource CenterGale Health and Wellness- provides access to full text articles on health issues 

Health & Medicine includes a link to Alzheimer’s Association- https://www.alz.org/pa 

PA Dept of Health- https://www.health.pa.gov/Pages/default.aspx