We hear a lot about disease awareness this time of year, but relatively few of those efforts are focused on Alzheimer’s and dementia. It might be time to change that, if the results of a new study are any kind of a wakeup call.
A research team at Trinity College Dublin recently found that 75% of people cannot accurately distinguish between dementia and “normal” old age. That’s especially true in the early stages of the disease.
It is common knowledge that memory fades in many aging adults. As a result, the younger generation tends to dismiss troubling warning signs as their parents and elders begin to lose their faculties.
In reporting on the study, The Daily Mail asked the study’s authors to identify symptoms of “normal aging,” as opposed to those of dementia. Researchers pointed to the following changes as fairly “normal”:
• Misplacing keys
• Forgetting telephone numbers
• Forgetting the names of casual acquaintances
But more serious forms of forgetfulness are potential red flags, they say. These include:
• Getting lost in familiar places
• Regularly struggling to recall words
• Inability to cook a meal
• Difficulty driving a car
• Problems with using money correctly
• Having trouble dressing oneself
Conflating these two sets of symptoms causes problems, as seniors end up delaying treatment or taking the wrong kinds of medications.
Additionally, the study found that 75% of people are unaware that high cholesterol and blood pressure can cause dementia — and that lifestyle changes can play an important preventative role.
The study is troubling but perhaps there’s a silver lining. After all, knowing that there is a problem is the first step toward solving it. Now we have a very clear understanding of a very specific problem: the people who are most at risk for dementia don’t know very much about it. We can change that. And maybe doing so will lead to more widespread prevention.
Ultimately, we are all growing older. As we age, we’re likely to experience health complications of some kind. That’s an eventuality we want to be prepared for, and knowledge is key in that preparation.
Let’s hope we see a real dementia awareness movement take shape in the wake of this study, with the goal of bringing down our country’s growing dementia numbers once and for all.
If you or your loved ones would like to talk about other ways in which you can plan for a sound financial future in the face of the unknown, the Middlesex County estate planning attorneys at O’Connell Law can help. Contact us today.
