With November being recognized nationwide as Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, the Clarendon County chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. held a walk Nov. 15 in downtown Manning.
Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia among people age 65 or older. Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and 50- 80 percent of dementia cases are diagnosed as Alzheimer's disease.
The sorority wanted to increase awareness of Alzheimer and its impact on the brain. Research reveals that symptoms of Alzheimer's start out small and get worse over time, as the brain weakens.
Although memory loss is a well-known symptom of Alzheimer's, there are more early symptoms to be aware of. An early sign of dementia can be detected by an unusual change in personality. For example, a meek-mannered loved one may suddenly start cursing, or a happy personality turns into an angry personality.
Another sign is not being able to do familiar tasks that have more than one step. For example, the family cook cannot make a memorable recipe anymore. Simple tasks like paying the bills are now impossible to accomplish.
Often, a person in the early stages of Alzheimer's will miss appointments or get lost easily. As Alzheimer's disease progresses, so do the symptoms. Coordination and depth perception are affected and the person may lose their balance easily or fall often.
The person will have difficulty with speaking. They may forget what they are saying in the middle of a sentence or their words may not make sense. In the final stages of Alzheimer's disease, the person may not be able to communicate at all and be completely dependent for care.
The ladies of AKA Inc. walked from Manning Elementary School to the Manning Walmart.
They then provided flyers to provide a brief, but in-depth look at the illness.
