Using our mobile app? Be sure to check for any new app updates to receive any enhancements.
Logo

Get Healthy!

25 Results for search "Alzheimer's".

Wellness Library Results

Anybody who met Mable Weaver several years ago would have never guessed she was in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. As the Berkeley, California, resident entered her 80s, she was alert and active, and she even held a job as a housekeeper. At that time, her next-door neighbor and daughter, LaFrancine Weaver Tate, was the only person who suspected a problem. And as Tate soon discovered, it w...

The deep fragrance of soy and garlic wafted out to the nurses' station from Mrs. Lee's room, signaling that her daughter, Mrs. Wong, had arrived with lunch. Time for me to make rounds. Mrs. Wong was her mother's interpreter and advocate, as well as her cook. When I walked in, Mrs. Wong was untying the handles of white plastic bags bearing red Chinese lettering. Inside were rectangular plastic cont...

Alzheimer's disease steals a person's privacy as surely as it steals memory. At a certain stage, your loved one may recall a time when she could bathe herself, but that time has passed. As a caregiver, it's your job to keep her clean while maintaining her comfort and dignity. The job description will change constantly with the disease. At first, the person in your care may feel embarrassed about ...

For 20 years, Robyn Yale has been on a mission to raise awareness that people with early-stage Alzheimer's disease can still lead rich, active lives. A licensed clinical social worker who practices in the San Francisco Bay Area, Yale says that the early stage of the disease is different from what happens in middle and later stages. People in the early stages are healthy, high functioning, and in m...

Most caregivers will do practically anything for a loved one with Alzheimer's disease. They'll give baths, help to dress the person, cut up food into manageable bites, and patiently answer the same question 20 times in a row. But when a patient starts wetting or soiling himself, even the most dedicated caregivers can feel defeated. It's hard to face the prospect of constantly cleaning urine stain...

You may feel unsettled when your mother botches her favorite recipe. Then again, who hasn't confused tablespoons with teaspoons a few times? But as the months go on, she starts forgetting to turn off burners. She puts salt in her coffee rather than sugar. And one day, she no longer remembers to eat. When Alzheimer's disease begins taking over the brain, even the most basic instincts aren't safe. ...

People with Alzheimer's disease often act as if their minds are caught in an endless tape loop. They may ask the same question 20 times in an afternoon, pace a stretch of floor for hours, or hum a tune that never seems to run out of verses. Many have a condition called echolalia, in which the patient repeats words endlessly or echoes a phrase. If you're caring for someone with the disease, this so...

Before your loved one developed Alzheimer's disease, the two of you used to talk about anything and everything. But what do you say now that he can't remember your name? The right words can be hard to find, but they're more important than ever. Simple, reassuring messages can give your loved one comfort and guidance -- the two things Alzheimer's patients most desperately need. Staying positive ...

With all of the difficulties facing people with Alzheimer's disease -- not to mention their caregivers -- oral hygiene may seem like a trivial issue. Getting a person clean and dressed is hard enough. Who has time to worry about a few cavities or slipping dentures? As it turns out, you do. Investing that time can be one of the most important things you do for your loved one. Dental hygiene cruci...

Your father puts on his pants one leg at a time, just as he has done since childhood. But today, there's something different. Your father has Alzheimer's disease, and this morning, unlike every other morning for the last 70 years, he's pulling on his pants on top of his pajamas. For Alzheimer's patients and their caregivers, the seemingly simple act of getting dressed can turn into a minefield of...

Susan Spiker could never have imagined that at age 27, with a busy married life and two young sons, she would simultaneously become a caregiver to her mother. But six years ago, at age 61, Betty Spiker was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD). "For quite a while after my mother's diagnosis, I think I was in denial," says Spiker, now 33, of Atlanta, Georgia. "For a year or so, I really believed...

In a memoir about caring for her husband, who had Alzheimer's disease, Lela Knox Shanks recalls that he once shouted at her, "Get out of here! You're an impostor trying to break up my marriage!" Afraid for her safety, she ran out the back door, sat in the sun, and cried, trying to figure out what to do. After 30 minutes or so, she tapped hesitantly at the back door. Her husband opened it, and excl...

Sometimes it seems people with Alzheimer's disease have lost all concept of boredom. How else could they stand to spend a day staring at the same wall or shuffling up and down the same hallway? The truth is, Alzheimer's patients may feel boredom as deeply as anyone else. And when they can no longer plan their own activities, the boredom can turn to frustration. A person may start wandering the ho...

Alzheimer's disease is like a cat burglar. It slips into a person's life without making a sound, and soon treasured possessions start disappearing: memory, personality, independence. For many years, even the top medical detectives in the country were baffled by such robbery. Doctors knew that the brains of people with Alzheimer's were filled with tangled strings of protein and sticky clumps of pl...

Most of us are choosy when it comes to mattresses, sheets, and pillows, and for good reason: We tend to spend more time in bed than any other single place. For people who are chronically ill or disabled, a quality bed isn't just a luxury item -- it's a necessity. The right bed can bring much-needed comfort. Most important, for people who are bedridden, or who sit or lie in the same position for ho...

As a caregiver, you know Alzheimer's disease never affects just one person in a family. Your life has changed, too, from your social life and relationships to your goals and priorities. "Changed" isn't even the word -- you've gone through a total upheaval, the kind that splits a life in two. In the years before Alzheimer's, you may have worried about the lawn or local politics or today's kids. In ...

Although my father had battled a rare but non-metastasizing form of cancer for 25 years, my mother had never been sick a day in her life. The alarming news of her illness, that it was not arthritis but in fact Lou Gehrig's disease with an accompanying Alzheimer's-type dementia, came from out of a cruel nowhere one September day in 1991. It came at the same time that my father was beginning to real...

When John Baylis's 94-year-old mother fell and broke her shoulder, he knew it was time to talk about a touchy subject: the possibility of helping her with her financial affairs. But she flat-out refused to discuss it. "I'll die in my bed and not be a bother to anyone," she snapped. Two years later, overwhelmed from trying to keep track of her money and pay taxes, she finally relented. Baylis was ...

Ethelinn Block thought her father's strange behavior was just signs of grief over the loss of his wife, and that he would return to normal in time. But after three years, Arthur's decline became alarming. He forgot to pay bills and keep appointments; he misplaced things. His business faltered to the point that his children had to close it down. As loss piled upon loss, eventually the family had to...

Doctors play a vital role in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, but they need help. Close cooperation between doctors, family members, and patients is a vital part of treatment. Doctors need to understand a patient's situation and symptoms in order to make an accurate diagnosis and prescribe the right medication. Meanwhile, patients and family members need to know about the course of the disea...

Have you ever asked for a "whatchamacallit" when you really needed a hammer? Did you ever forget the name of someone you just met? Even in the best of cases, memory is surprisingly fragile. As a person gets older, memory glitches can become a little more common -- and more frightening. Young people laugh off their forgetful moments, but many older people worry that every slipup is a sign of Alzhei...

1. Alzheimer's disease is the same as dementia and is a natural part of the aging process. True False 2. How many people in the United States are thought to suffer from Alzheimer's disease? a. Around a million b. Around 5 million c. Around 25 million d. Around 40 million 3. Which of the following is the most important risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease? ...

Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba ) is the only remaining member of a family of trees that flourished centuries ago in ancient China. Dubbed a living fossil, ginkgo today thrives worldwide in parks and gardens, and in plantations where leaves of carefully pruned ginkgo shrubs are harvested and processed into supplements. Although the people of China have been using the fruits and seeds since 2800 BC, only dur...

When a loved one has Alzheimer's disease, time takes on new significance. Every day that he or she can hold onto old memories or stay out of a nursing home becomes a gift. Thanks to new treatments and a growing understanding of the disease, families and patients can enjoy more of those gifts than ever before. For some patients, new drugs can delay the advance of the disease for months, or even yea...

There's still no cure for Alzheimer's or known way to prevent it. But if you're worried about developing the disease, your doctor just might give you an unexpected prescription. She might urge you to exercise daily, eat a diet rich in whole foods, and watch your weight. She might even recommend taking a language class or some dance lessons. Or having a fish dinner twice a week. Or adding curry dis...