September is World Alzheimer's Month, with September 21 (aka Friday) World Alzheimer's Day.
You...yes, you reading this...have a 12% chance of developing Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia. However, if you have a family member who has the disease, your chances increase to 30%.
There are currently 35 million people with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia. That's more people than all of Canada (our population is over 34 million).
The youngest known person with an Alzheimer's diagnosis was 29 years old.
For every person who gets an Alzheimer's diagnosis, there are 10-12 other people affected. This includes family members, co-workers, neighbours and friends.
There is no known cause for Alzheimer's disease and no way to really diagnosis the disease-you get tested for everything else, and if the tests come back negative, by process of elimination, you get an Alzheimer's diagnosis.
The only way to give a true Alzheimer's diagnosis is by an autopsy, after the person has died.
There is currently no cure for this disease. But local Alzheimer Societies (Canada) and Associations (USA) provide support to persons with the disease, their caregivers, family members and friends.
Worldwide, there is one new case of Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia diagnoses every 4 seconds.
Please visit your local Alzheimer Society/Association to find out more about this disease, to donate or to get involved.
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