When my mother died after the long decline of dementia, I had nothing but good feeling for the Alzheimers Association, seeing them as providing comfort for caregivers and attempting to find cures for this disease. Now, I have come to see another side of this organization, one that subtly increases the fear of this disease by misleading the public on the reality of aging with which memory decline is intimately associated.
The section of their website with the title Alzheimer's Myths illustrates this inaccuracy, which when pointed out by my comments passed along through a member of their board of advisors, Mario Garett Ph.D, was revised as shown below after the original version which follows. I append my letter to the association that described the defects of the original version with specific research refuting their main premise that "memory loss is not a natural part of aging." My specific recommendation in my letter that they did not include would have provided comfort for the vast majority of elderly who have normal memory decline and for whom medical treatment is of no value. This is illustrative of a larger movement to medicalize normal brain aging.
This is what appeared before May of 2012:
Myth 1: Memory loss is a natural part of aging.
Reality: In the past people believed memory loss was a normal part of aging, often regarding even Alzheimer’s as natural age-related decline. Experts now recognize severe memory loss as a symptom of serious illness.
Whether memory naturally declines to some extent remains an open question. Many people feel that their memory becomes less sharp as they grow older, but determining whether there is any scientific basis for this belief is a research challenge still being addressed.
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Revision based on my objections as of 5/1/2012 and current as of February 2013.
Myth 1: Memory loss is a natural part of aging.
Reality: As people age, it's normal to have occasional memory problems, such as forgetting the name of a person you've recently met. However, Alzheimer's is more than occasional memory loss. It's a disease that causes brain cells to malfunction and ultimately die. When this happens, an individual may forget the name of a longtime friend or what roads to take to return to a home they've lived in for decades.
It can be difficult to tell normal memory problems from memory problems that should be a cause for concern. The Alzheimer's Association has developed information to help you tell the difference. If you or a loved one has memory problems or other problems with thinking and learning that concern you, contact a physician. Sometimes the problems are caused by medication side effects, vitamin deficiencies or other conditions and can be reversed with treatment.
-----------------------End of their current website description ------------------
While this is an improvement over their previous wording, it still makes the statement that it is a myth that memory loss is a natural part of aging. This is simply not factual as shown in the research referenced in my letter to the association that follows:
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To Alzhiemers Association
Consideration of revision on Myths section of Website:
Alzheimers Association section on Myths evaluates the truth of the assertion that "Memory loss is a natural part of aging." with this statement: "Whether memory naturally declines to some extent remains an open question. Many people feel that their memory becomes less sharp as they grow older, but determining whether there is any scientific basis for this belief is a research challenge still being addressed."
This extensive review by the editors of Medscape defines the two major categories of memory, one consisting of two elements that are stable and the other with six elements that decline with age. The article has several hundred references supporting this conclusion. While specific aspects of memory decline differentially, with some even remaining stable, in the aggregate there is no support for the assertion that the reality of memory loss of aging is lacking scientific confirmation. It is not an "open question."
Given the research evidence that concludes, by cognitive testing and change in brain structure, that memory does decline with age, this statement by the Alzheimer's Association damages credibility, not only of the organization, but the effort that it supports. It also can be seen as self serving, as the implication that memory could remain stable through advanced old age, exaggerates the reality of the actual harm done by dementing disease.
Here's one possible replacement that has the advantage of being accurate as well as reassuring for the millions who see their normal aging as incipient dementia.
"Memory loss is a natural part of aging. Some aspects such as vocabulary retention can remain stable over most people's life span, while others such as learning new names declines for almost everyone. Diseases such as Alzheimers have some features in common with normal memory loss, but at increased rate and severity."
A.R.
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Make no mistake, Alzheimers Disease is real and devastating to victims and their families. However, the universal decline in memory with aging is equally as real, and there are cultural ways of optimally dealing with this outside of the medical establishment which has no special skills in easing the suffering of loss of cognition. For those who choose to volunteer to be part of research in this area, I applaud them. But this must not be imposed by subterfuge or by government mandate for ethical and moral reasons that must not be ignored.
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Here is the link to one of Dr. Garrett's articles that share my approach to this issue: Fear of Alzheimer’s Disease
This essay is part of a series on ACA and dementia that begins here.
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