Have it ever occured to someone that alzheimers is just a natural occurance that happens when you get old?

Answer 1

For a long time, people did think you got senile because you just got old. Except, unlike wrinkles and grey hair- which everyone gets, not everyone does go senile. There are in fact, more people who have intact faculties than there are those who do not. So age isn't quite the explaination. A good many things we used to associate with age have been discovered to not necessarily be part and parcel of the process of aging. I can remember when dentures were considered a natural part of old age, and it was exceptional to find somebody in their 60's with their own teeth. Everyone seemed to just accept you wore out your teeth. They also though just having one or two cavities per year was okay as well. Then of course, we discovered that if you simply brushed and flossed the things regularly, they actually could last a lifetime. You wouldn't be very pleased to have a cavity or two a year, nor would you sign it off a simply age wear and tear- would you? So no- Alzheimers is not just a "natural occurence" any more than your tooth decay is. And remember, old age isn't something that just happens to somebody else. It's happening to you, even as you read this. You won't be "young" forever either. And unless you are willing to sign it all off to just a process of old age, you might want to consider supporting the research into them.

Answer 2

Like "The Mom" said, that is what people used to think. But some people get Alzheimers at an incredibly early age, while other people can live to over 100 and still have mental clarity. It has been shown that there are chemical changes in brains of Alzheimers patients, which explains the decline in mental capacity.

Answer 3

You Obviously have had no one in your family with Alzheimer's. Autopsies show that the brain of an Alzheimer's patient has more aluminum for one and other connective problems in their brains.

My Husbands Mother and 2 Aunts all died from the side effects of Alzheimer's. Trust me it is not the average mental state of EVERY Senior citizen.

In my Mother in Laws case and her sisters it started about 10 years prior to their death. They lost the ability to use the phone. Believed people were stealing from them. Did not recognize family members, or know where they were.
Occasionally they were momentarily normal and then it was gone. "SUN DOWNING" is a common trait of Alzheimer's Patients. It means they become particularly bad late in the afternoons, in some cases violent.

I equate it to a slice of Swiss cheese passing in front of your eyes, when the holes passed there was a bit of memory and then it was gone.

In her case she recognized me (not by name) but she new I was a familiar person. But her own Son she did not recognize.

My Mother and Father were the same age and died just before her BUT WERE MENTALLY SOUND.

SO NO, THEY ARE NOT THE SAME THING.

I already sympathize should it happen to you.

Answer 4

No, that's not 'purely a organic incidence' that occurs once you get old. Alzheimers could have similarities to 'senile dementia' yet there's a distinctive 'exchange' interior the ideas shape to Alzheimer's sufferers. Alzheimer's can ensue very EARLY in existence ... I as quickly as knew a guy who grow to be in his 50s who grow to be in charge for looking after a cousin with Alzheimers, and his cousin grow to be purely 35. Alzheimer's is a detrimental illness even even though it rather is taken care of. countless the cures do additionally help those with senile dementia (that's a 'illness of old age') yet the two ailments are actually not the comparable.

Answer 5

We joke a lot about the short term memory loss that is common with advancing age and attribute it to "Alzheimer's." But the disease is quite a bit more serious than just the signs of the normal aging process. The normal old person knows who and where he/she is and can function normally in routine tasks such as meal prep. The Alzheimer's patient loses a great deal of his/her mental capability and is no longer able to function responsibly.

Answer 6

If it were a "natural occurrence" then everyone would have it. Not everyone gets Alzheimer's disease, I think it's 1 in 68 in the US.

Answer 7

I think so.. back in the day they called it eccentricities.
God Bless