Alzheimer's disease is the 6th most major reason for deaths in the United States where approximately 500,000 people fall victims to death by this disease each year. The estimate for people living in the grips of this illness was around 5.4 million in 2014. With the confounding increase in the cases of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, it has become crucial that we analyze the possible causes. The factors that lead to the onset of dementia include vitamin B12 deficiency, heavy metal poisoning, side effects of medicine or drug interactions, and some brain tumors, chronic cases of alcoholism, and HIV and AIDS. Some of these factors may help account for why these problems have shown evident increases in the recent years. With increased health problems and drug addiction, our exposure to drugs, medicinal or otherwise, has increased sharply in the preceding few years. Also, because we work in an environment where pollution and non-recycled waste is building up, we face amplified exposure to heavy metals and carcinogens (cancer causing agents). This is instigating greater risks of cancer and heavy metal poisoning, and these issues are likely to end in dementia. Increased sexual contact and elevated drug abuse have also led to increasing in HIV and AIDS cases and subsequently the onset of dementia.
Alzheimer's disease is a form of dementia that leads the brain towards deterioration and causes problems with memory, the thought process and behaviors. In worse cases, Alzheimer's also precludes the person from performing routine tasks. Alzheimer's disease is known to get worse with age in people who already suffer from the problem. Dementia, on the other hand, is the disorder of the brain caused by any ailment of the brain or may also result from an injury suffered by the brain. Dementia covers a wider variety of mental conditions including Alzheimer's disease and like Alzheimer's; it involves disorders of the brain that are severe enough to cause a person to mislay his routine bodily functions. The term Senility is also used interchangeably with dementia.
Even though we might be helpless against natural causes of dementia, we could take steps to improve our memory and cognitive abilities during the old age. Doing so may even keep all forms of dementia at bay. One way of doing this may be to exercise regularly; not just the body but also the mind. The brain could be kept active by becoming involved in tasks that require heavy mental activities like crosswords, math problems, trivia’s, and card games. Our nutritional regime should also involve food that is beneficial for the intelligence. Fruits and vegetables should be used in excess while use of alcohol and other drugs and liquor should be kept at a minimum. All forms of stress should be avoided or remedied. Keeping helpful, and sincere friends and sparing relaxation time could also lend a hand in accomplishing the task. Our sleep routines should also be regular and sufficient to support healthy brain activity.
References
association, A. (2014). Alzheimer's Facts and Figures. Retrieved from alz.org: http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_facts_and_figures.asp
MD, W. (2014, January 27). Dementia - Cause. Retrieved from Web MD: http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/tc/dementia-cause
Melinda Smith, M. L. (2014, November ). How to Improve Your Memory. Retrieved from Help Guide: http://www.helpguide.org/articles/memory/how-to-improve-your-memory.htm
