World Alzheimer's Day
World Alzheimer’s Day is celebrated annually on September 21 with the aim of raising awareness about the disease and reducing its social effects.
The disease is named after the German physician Aloys Alzheimer, who described it in 1906 after he noticed anatomical changes in the brain tissue of a woman, who had died of an unusual mental illness.
The celebration of the day began in Washington in 1984, when a group of Alzheimer’s experts presented a vision that aimed at "better life for people with dementia and their families", and since that time the vision has not changed.
Facts:
Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia, leading to a continuous decline in memory and thinking skills.
Women have a higher risk.
Education can lower your risk.
Most cases of Alzheimer's occur in people age 65 and older.
There are 130,000 cases of Alzheimer's disease in Saudi Arabia.
Prevalence of Alzheimer's:
As of 2013, there were an estimated 44.4 million people with dementia worldwide.This number will increase to an estimated 75.6 million in 2030, and 135.5 million in 2050. Already 62% of people with dementia live in developing countries, but by 2050 this will rise to 71%.
There is a strong economic argument in favour of earlier diagnosis and timely intervention. You can see the reports at http://www.alz.co.uk/worldreport.
According to South Africa’s 2011 census, there are approximately 2.2 million people in South Africa with some form of dementia.
Higher than expected prevalence: report on a recent University of the Free State study funded by our research fund. See http://www.ufs.ac.za/templates/archive.aspx?news=1871&cat=1. If you have a problem activating the link, go to www.ufs.ac.za , scroll down to News, then Campus News. Click on News Archive and then ‘Higher than expected etc.’
More facts about Alzheimer's can be read in the link here:
https://blog.caregiverhomes.com/the-7-stages-of-alzheimers.