Memory loss can be, for many families, the first sign that a loved-one is developing dementia. It is the most well-known symptom of Alzheimer’s disease, and often very distressing. But how are memories formed? And how does Alzheimer’s alter the way we remember? How are memories formed? The number of nerve cells in our brains […]
Alzheimer’s disease sucks. I’ve seen it take my mother-in-law from a successful teacher who taught children to read to a shell of her former self who doesn’t speak and needs help eating, bathing and going to the bathroom. And the worst part? There is no treatment or cure to slow or stop the progression of […]
There are more connections in the brain than stars in the galaxy Children often have a knack of bringing us down to earth – seeing things and saying things just as they are. We arranged a ‘brain workshop’ at a primary school to explain how the most complex organ in our body works and what […]
The tunes to these words take me straight to the back seat of Mum’s rackety Volkswagen. There Mum taught my younger brother and me the popular songs of her youth (and an ever-expanding vocabulary of swear words – but that’s another story). I love to remember such times. But it’s still the case, sadly, that […]
This is a cross Blog post with Department of Health Social Care News. The first time I came across Mr Smith he wasn’t in the clinic or even a hospital bed. Instead, he was sitting at the wheel of his car, which he had somehow wedged into a small passage that leads only to the hospital […]
We’ve all seen stories and adverts for products that claim to improve your memory or boost the brain. Widely available, at a cost, these products tempt many who are looking for something that could help relieve the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. One, ginkgo biloba, has been extensively researched and sadly there’s now convincing evidence it can […]
Alzheimer’s disease is mostly thought of as a memory problem. But as many who deal with the disease know, this isn’t the only problem people experience. Many patients come into clinic reporting difficulty following conversations in busy rooms, or hearing someone over a busy phone line. We’re trying to find out why people with Alzheimer’s have these problems, and what this can tell us about Alzheimer’s disease as a whole.
