Symptoms of Alzheimers

Alzheimer's disease is a degenerative disease happening later in life. The brain literally shrinks as brain cells die. It is normal to have some memory loss as we grow older. The symptoms of Alzheimer's disease first show up as small memory lapses that increase rapidly in frequency and severity.

Memory

• A person suffering from Alzheimer's disease may start forgetting the names of familiar places and people or have difficult time remembering what they want to say or how to express themselves.

Disorientation

• They may be confused about the date, time or current location. If they do remember, everything seems to be about the "now" and immediate gratification, almost reverting back to the presence of mind of a small child.

Irritability

• Alzheimer's sufferers become irritable and angry with their fading abilities. They may even become violent and depressed. There may be sleep problems and they may have a loss of appetite or difficulty in feeding themselves and routine grooming.

Control

• In later stages of Alzheimer's disease they may lose their control over their bodily functions and their ability to speak.

Final Stages

• In the final stages of this disease, people will sleep often and need constant care. Because they are very weak, at this point they may contract other conditions such as respiratory ailments and skin infections.