What is Alzheimer's Disease? | CDC

Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia. A progressive disease beginning with mild memory loss possibly leading to loss of the ability to carry on a ... Skipdirectlytositecontent Skipdirectlytopageoptions SkipdirectlytoA-Zlink Alzheimer’sDiseaseandRelatedDementiasEspañol(Spanish) Minus RelatedPages OnThisPage WhatisAlzheimer'sDisease?Whohasit?Whatweknow?RecognizingsignsofAlzheimer'sWhattodo? HowisAlzheimer'sdiseasetreated?SupportforfamilyandfriendsBurdenofAlzheimer'sResourcesReferences WhatisAlzheimer’sDisease? Alzheimer’sdiseaseisthemostcommontypeofdementia. Itisaprogressivediseasebeginningwithmildmemorylossand possiblyleadingtolossoftheabilitytocarryonaconversationandrespondtotheenvironment. Alzheimer’sdiseaseinvolvespartsofthebrainthatcontrolthought,memory,andlanguage. Itcanseriouslyaffectaperson’sabilitytocarryoutdailyactivities. WhohasAlzheimer’sDisease? Alzheimer'sDiseaseandRacialandEthnicDisparitiesinfographic AllAlzheimer-relatedinfographics In2020,asmanyas5.8millionAmericanswerelivingwithAlzheimer’sdisease.1 YoungerpeoplemaygetAlzheimer’sdisease,butitislesscommon. Thenumberofpeoplelivingwiththediseasedoublesevery5yearsbeyondage65. Thisnumberisprojectedtonearlytripleto14millionpeopleby2060.1 Symptomsofthediseasecanfirstappearafterage60,andtheriskincreaseswithage. WhatisknownaboutAlzheimer’sDisease? ScientistsdonotyetfullyunderstandwhatcausesAlzheimer’sdisease.Therelikelyisnotasinglecausebutratherseveralfactorsthatcanaffecteachpersondifferently. AgeisthebestknownriskfactorforAlzheimer’sdisease. Familyhistory—researchersbelievethatgeneticsmayplayaroleindevelopingAlzheimer’sdisease.However,genesdonotequaldestiny.AhealthylifestylemayhelpreduceyourriskofdevelopingAlzheimer’sdisease.Twolarge,longtermstudiesindicatethatadequatephysicalactivity,anutritiousdiet,limitedalcoholconsumption,andnotsmokingmayhelppeople.Tolearnmoreaboutthestudy,youcanlistentoashortpodcast. Changesinthebraincanbeginyearsbeforethefirstsymptomsappear. Researchersarestudyingwhethereducation,diet,andenvironmentplayaroleindevelopingAlzheimer’sdisease. Thereisgrowingscientificevidencethathealthybehaviors,whichhavebeenshowntopreventcancer,diabetes,andheartdisease,mayalsoreduceriskforsubjectivecognitivedecline.Here’s8ways. WhatarethewarningsignsofAlzheimer’sdisease? MemoryLossVideoWatchthisvideo “MemoryLossisNotaNormalPartofAging” Alzheimer’sdiseaseisnotanormalpartofaging.MemoryproblemsaretypicallyoneofthefirstwarningsignsofAlzheimer’sdiseaseandrelateddementias. Inadditiontomemoryproblems,someonewithsymptomsofAlzheimer’sdiseasemayexperienceoneormoreofthefollowing: Memorylossthatdisruptsdailylife,suchasgettinglostinafamiliarplaceorrepeatingquestions. Troublehandlingmoneyandpayingbills. Difficultycompletingfamiliartasksathome,atworkoratleisure. Decreasedorpoorjudgment. Misplacingthingsandbeingunabletoretracestepstofindthem. Changesinmood,personality,orbehavior. Evenifyouorsomeoneyouknowhasseveralorevenmostofthesesigns,itdoesn’tmeanit’sAlzheimer’sdisease.Knowthe10warningsigns(alsoavailableinSpanish). WhattodoifyoususpectAlzheimer’sdisease GettingcheckedbyyourhealthcareprovidercanhelpdetermineifthesymptomsyouareexperiencingarerelatedtoAlzheimer’sdisease,oramoretreatableconditionssuchasavitamindeficiencyorasideeffectfrommedication.Earlyandaccuratediagnosisalsoprovidesopportunitiesforyouandyourfamilytoconsiderfinancialplanning,developadvancedirectives,enrollinclinicaltrials,andanticipatecareneeds. HowisAlzheimer’sdiseasetreated? MedicalmanagementcanimprovequalityoflifeforindividualslivingwithAlzheimer’sdiseaseandfortheircaregivers.ThereiscurrentlynoknowncureforAlzheimer’sdisease.Treatmentaddressesseveralareas: Helpingpeoplemaintainbrainhealth. Managingbehavioralsymptoms. Slowingordelayingsymptomsofthedisease. Supportforfamilyandfriends Currently,manypeoplelivingwithAlzheimer’sdiseasearecaredforathomebyfamilymembers.Caregivingcanhavepositiveaspectsforthecaregiveraswellasthepersonbeingcaredfor.Itmaybringpersonalfulfillmenttothecaregiver,suchassatisfactionfromhelpingafamilymemberorfriend,andleadtothedevelopmentofnewskillsandimprovedfamilyrelationships. Althoughmostpeoplewillinglyprovidecaretotheirlovedonesandfriends,caringforapersonwithAlzheimer’sdiseaseathomecanbeadifficulttaskandmaybecomeoverwhelmingattimes.Eachdaybringsnewchallengesasthecaregivercopeswithchanginglevelsofabilityandnewpatternsofbehavior.Asthediseasegetsworse,peoplelivingwithAlzheimer’sdiseaseoftenneedmoreintensivecare. Youcanfindmoreinformationaboutcaringforyourselfandaccessahelpfulcareplanningform. WhatistheburdenofAlzheimer’sdiseaseintheUnitedStates? Alzheimer’sdiseaseisoneofthetop10leadingcausesofdeathintheUnitedStates.2 The6thleadingcauseofdeathamongUSadults. The5thleadingcauseofdeathamongadultsaged65yearsorolder.3 In2020,anestimated5.8millionAmericansaged65yearsorolderhadAlzheimer’sdisease.1Thisnumberisprojectedtonearlytripleto14millionpeopleby2060.1 In2010,thecostsoftreatingAlzheimer’sdiseasewereprojectedtofallbetween$159and$215billion.4By2040,thesecostsareprojectedtojumptobetween$379andmorethan$500billionannually.4 DeathratesforAlzheimer’sdiseaseareincreasing,unlikeheartdiseaseandcancerdeathratesthatareonthedecline.5Dementia,includingAlzheimer’sdisease,hasbeenshowntobeunder-reportedindeathcertificatesandthereforetheproportionofolderpeoplewhodiefromAlzheimer’smaybeconsiderablyhigher.6 WhatisknownaboutreducingyourriskofAlzheimer’sDisease? Thescienceonriskreductionisquicklyevolving,andmajorbreakthroughsarewithinreach.Forexample,thereisgrowingevidencethatpeoplewhoadopthealthylifestylehabits—likeregularexerciseandbloodpressuremanagement—canlowertheirriskofdementia.Thereisgrowingscientificevidencethathealthybehaviors,whichhavebeenshowntopreventcancer,diabetes,andheartdisease,mayalsoreduceriskforsubjectivecognitivedecline.Tolearnmoreaboutthecurrentstateofevidenceondementiariskfactorsandtheimplicationsforpublichealth,pleasereadthefollowingsummariesonCardiovascularHealth,Exercise,DiabetesandObesity,TraumaticBrainInjury(TBI),TobaccoandAlcohol,DietandNutrition, Sleep,SensoryImpairment,andSocialEngagementortheCompiledReport (includesallreportsinthislist). ResourcesonAging,Alzheimer'sDiseaseandCognitiveHealthAging CDCHealthyAgingProgram NationalInstituteonAging TheNationalLibraryofMedicine AdministrationforCommunityLiving CDCHealthyBrainInitiative TheHealthyBrainInitiative StateandLocalPublicHealthPartnershipstoAddressDementia:The2018-2023RoadMap[PDF–19.3MB] RoadMapforIndianCountry[PDF–10.3MB] OtherAlzheimer’sDiseaseandCognitiveHealthResources Alzheimer’sAssociation Alzheimer’sDiseasePublicHealthCurriculum[PDF–10MB] Alzheimer’sFoundation Alzheimer’s.gov BrainHealthasYouAge[PDF–371KB] NationalInstituteonAging UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Alzheimer’sAssociationPublicHealthEfforts   References Matthews,K.A.,Xu,W.,Gaglioti,A.H.,Holt,J.B.,Croft,J.B.,Mack,D.,&McGuire,L.C.(2018).RacialandethnicestimatesofAlzheimer’sdiseaseandrelateddementiasintheUnitedStates(2015–2060)inadultsaged≥65years.Alzheimer’s&Dementia.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jalz.2018.06.3063 XuJ,KochanekKD,SherryL,MurphyBS,Tejada-VeraB.Deaths:finaldatafor2007.Nationalvitalstatisticsreports;vol.58,no.19.Hyattsville,MD:NationalCenterforHealthStatistics.2010. HeronM.Deaths:leadingcausesfor2010.Nationalvitalstatisticsreports;vol.62,no6.Hyattsville,MD:NationalCenterforHealthStatistics.2013. HurdMD,MartorellP,DelavandeA,MullenKJ,LangaKM.MonetarycostsofdementiaintheUnitedStates.NEJM.2013;368(14):1326-34. Tejada-VeraB.MortalityfromAlzheimer’sdiseaseintheUnitedStates:datafor2000and2010.NCHSdatabrief,no116.Hyattsville,MD:NationalCenterforHealthStatistics.2013. JamesBD.LeurgansSE,HebertLE,etal.ContributionofAlzheimerdiseasetomortalityintheUnitedStates.Neurology.2014;82:1-6.  TopofPage Pagelastreviewed:October26,2020 Contentsource: DivisionofPopulationHealth,NationalCenterforChronicDiseasePreventionandHealthPromotion homeAlzheimer’sDiseaseandHealthyAgingProgramHome AboutUsplusicon AtAGlance:Alzheimer’sDisease Alzheimer’sDiseaseandRelatedDementiasplusicon WhatIsDementia? 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