Since November is National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month, it’s appropriate to take some time now and consider some of the misconceptions that have arisen around this disease.

There’s no question that this is one of the cruelest diseases afflicting mankind, so it helps to have an understanding of its true nature, rather than simply accepting all the stories associated with it.

In this article, we’ll review some of the most common misconceptions about Alzheimer’s, and try to set the record straight. It’s appropriate to have a healthy fear of this awful disease, but it should not be made worse by buying into exaggerations or misrepresentations about it. 

Myth: Alzheimer’s only affects seniors

It’s a fairly common misconception that only older people can be afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease. While it’s certainly true that the majority of Alzheimer’s patients are senior citizens, the disease itself is not restricted to older people. In fact, it’s possible for symptoms of Alzheimer’s to appear in patients as early as 30 years of age.

As it turns out, a young person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is likely to face a far more difficult outlook in their remaining years than an older person would.

By the time a senior citizen develops Alzheimer’s, they are already fairly late in their life cycle, and the onset of Alzheimer’s generally hastens their demise by a number of years. Someone with early-onset Alzheimer’s diagnosed at age 30, basically has more than half their life to look forward to under the weight of Alzheimer’s symptoms.

It’s true that early onset Alzheimer’s is relatively rare, but it does happen, so it’s not accurate to think of Alzheimer’s as a disease exclusively contracted by older people.

Myth: Alzheimer’s is not the same as dementia

Many people think that Alzheimer’s is the same thing as dementia, but this is an inaccuracy because there are many different types of dementia besides Alzheimer’s.

Apart from Alzheimer’s disease, there are actually quite a few pathologies that can trigger neurocognitive disorders accepted by the medical community as dementia. These types of dementia include frontotemporal, dementia associated with Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies.

Each of these conditions will be characterized by manifestations dependent on the neuronal area which is affected by the disease. It’s also true that for each of these types of dementia, the characteristics, risk factors, and pathophysiology are quite different. They are all classified as dementia simply because they eventually cause neurocognitive impairment, that will interfere with daily activity execution by patients.

All of these types of dementia will require assistance from some type of caregiver.

Myth: There is no effective treatment for Alzheimer’s

The reason that this misconception has persisted for so long is because it’s fairly well known that there is no cure currently available for Alzheimer’s disease. However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t some forms of effective medical treatment that can be used to reduce or control symptoms.

In the early years after Alzheimer’s has been diagnosed, there are a number of medications that can be very effective at managing symptoms.

Since this is a progressive type of disease, eventually the positive impacts of medication will cease to be effective, but that doesn’t mean they should be overlooked while they can still bring relief to a patient. During the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s, some medications have proven to be extremely effective at managing symptoms, and this should be undertaken for all Alzheimer’s patients for as long as the treatment remains effective.

Myth: It’s impossible to diagnose Alzheimer’s

It has been thought by many that diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease is an impossible task, primarily because the brain changes defining the disease are really only evident when an autopsy has been performed. However, scientists and health officials have a much better understanding of Alzheimer’s today, and that has helped to establish criteria that significantly decrease any errors in diagnosing the disease.

It’s also now possible to detect those histological brain changes without having to conduct an autopsy. This can be accomplished by observing biomarkers that are detected in a number of tests for the disease.

Some of these tests include magnetic resonance imaging, lumbar puncture, and positron emission tomography. All of these have helped to make diagnosing Alzheimer’s a much more accurate prospect, with far fewer errors in diagnosis.

Myth: Alzheimer’s defines you as a person

One of the biggest misconceptions about Alzheimer’s is that anyone who is diagnosed with the disease is actually defined as a person by that disease. That means they are thought of first and foremost as an Alzheimer’s patient, with all other considerations taking a backseat.

It certainly doesn’t have to be that way, because people afflicted by Alzheimer’s are capable of living productive lives and enjoying meaningful relationships with their loved ones for several years after being diagnosed. Although Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease by nature and will eventually trigger significant cognitive decline, that won’t happen immediately.

This means an Alzheimer’s patient can still enjoy a rewarding lifestyle by managing the symptoms of the disease, and by avoiding triggers that make it worse.