Understanding Alzheimer’s

It may not have the cachet of an asteroid barreling toward the earth but for Baby Boomers, the generation born after World War II and now heading into retirement, the specter of Alzheimer’s disease may be even more threatening and unavoidable. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, nearly one in five Boomers, a group of more than 79-million, will deal with some form of dementia during their lifetime. And Latino Boomers can count on bearing a considerable share of this burden.

Alzheimer’s is a progressive form of dementia that often occurs in late middle age. Its symptoms include disorientation, memory loss and confusion. It ultimately leads to death.

According to the Center for Disease Control, Alzheimer’s is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. Alzheimer’s has also been attributed as the cause of death for some of the most famous personalities of the twentieth century. Former President Ronald Reagan, Winston Churchill, Henry Ford, Norman Rockwell, Rita Hayworth and boxer, ‘Sugar’ Ray Robinson were all victims of this disease.

Because Alzheimer’s often occurs in those who have diabetes and heart disease, two illnesses that have plagued Latinos, “there is a higher risk potential for Alzheimer’s,” said Sara Spaulding, Vice President of the Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado. Altering lifestyles – changing diets and exercising more – she said, is a good first step in improving every day or long term health.

Alzheimer’s has often been referred to as the ‘only disease that kills you twice,’ because it robs its victims of their emotional life, their memory, their connection to loved ones well before it takes away the biological life. Before that, it can also wreck havoc on family budgets and more. The Alzheimer’s Association says that in 2007, nearly 10 million Americans provided more than 8.4 billion ...