Culture and Disease
HCS/ 245 University of Phoenix

Culture and Disease To introduce Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of Dementia. There is no cure for the disease. And, it gets worse as it progresses. (Eventually leads to death). It was first described by a German psychiatrist in 1906. His name was Alois Alzheimer; hence the disease was named after him. Most people that get AD are over the age of 65. In 2006, there were 26.6 million sufferers worldwide. Alzheimer's is predicted to affect 1 in 85 people globally by 2050. Current treatments only help with the symptoms of the disease. There are no available treatments that stop or reverse the progression of the disease. There has been over 1,000 clinical trials have been conducted to test the varied components of Alzheimer’s disease. Mental Stimulation, exercise, and a balanced diet are ways to delay the cognitive symptoms of AD. Usually a spouse or loved one becomes the caregiver since people with AD rely on others. It is one of the most costly diseases in developed countries.
Elderly people are the most likely to be diagnosed with AD. The greatest risk factor to Alzheimer’s disease is age; about 13% of people older than 65 have dementia. 16% of women 71 years or older have dementia, while that rate is 11% in men of the same age group. People in developed countries that use Aluminum products, eat a lot of red meat, and have poor cardiovascular health are at a higher risk of getting AD. Another factor is lifestyle; Obesity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol can play a part in acquiring the disease.
Race also is a factor. In America, African Americans have a higher rate if Dementia than whites. African-Americans also have significantly higher rates of high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. Basically any nationality in America has a higher chance of being diagnosed with AD. For example, Japanize American men have higher rates of dementia than Japanize men living in Japan. And, African Americans have a higher chance of getting the disease than Africans living in Africa do, and so on and so forth. Another factor is emotional health. People with a history of depression are more prone to AD. On the other hand though, people with an education are less likely to suffer from the disease. Studies show that the highly educated people have AD less than uneducated people. Some researchers believe this is because of the beneficial consequence of lots of learning and use of memory. Next, I am going to write on environmental factors of the disease. The most studied of the environmental factors are aluminum, zinc, food-borne poisons, and viruses. There are no modes for disease transmission in Alzheimer’s. These studies are still being conducted to try to better understand what causes AD, and what we can do to prevent it. The methods that are being used to control the spread, or delay the disease in the brain: Since AD is not contagious, there is no risk from person to person. There is still no cure for the disease, but some medications have been developed for Alzheimer's disease serve to enhance neuronal function, suppress inflammation, block or reduce the generation of oxidative stress in the brain, or minimize cognitive damage. Unfortunately, there is still unknown how to stop the spread of the neurotoxic plaques. Have you ever heard that saying “prevention is better than a cure”. Well, that saying applies to Alzheimer’s disease. The First important thing that you can do to prevent Alzheimer’s disease is eating a nutritious diet. Eating a healthy diet containing fresh vegetables that are rich in foliate will not only help to prevent or delay Alzheimer’s disease but also other forms of dementia.
Moving on, there is really is no role of social and/or cultural influences and beliefs on treatments options with AD. The only thing patients can do once their diagnosed is take medications