abudson

No! you are not at more risk for dementia just because you have a bad memory. If you do, you may be better off than other because you already know how to compensate for your dementia with memory aides such as calendars, notebooks, post-it notes, phone apps, etc.

Pictures are a wonderful way to interact with someone with Alzheimer's! We did research in our lab to show that people understand and remember information in picture better than with words alone. Experiential learning is ideal. But if you want to say, help them remember their schedule, print it out using pictures and they will have an easier time remembering it.

I recommend bringing up memory problems and Alzheimer's in the future just like any other medical problem. Try to fight against the stigma of Alzheimer's disease by speaking about it normally, like the possibility of hip fractures and other medical problems. The other scary truth is that 50% of those over the age of 85 have the disease or something similar, so if you live long enough, it is a concern.

Regarding medications, the currently available, FDA approved medications work to increase the levels of the brain chemical acetylcholine. From the perspective of the individual and their family, these medications can turn the clock back by 6 to 12 months on the disease--making someone's memory the way that it was during that time. It cannot, however, stop the clock from ticking down. But people will always be 6-12 months better on the medications. We cover this topic in our book as well.

Almost. Because the amyloid precursor protein that starts Alzheimer's is on Chromosome 21 and Down's syndrome is due to trisomy 21 (three copies of the chromosome), most people with Down's syndrome develop Alzheimer's disease. However, some people don't have copies of the entire chromosome 21 and thus not every patient with Down's syndrome develops Alzheimer's. But most do.