What is Dementia?
Dementia is a broad term that can't be defined as a one condition or experience. It describes various impairments that will impact a person's everyday life.
Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe the symptoms of a large group of illnesses
These illnesses cause a progressive decline in a person’s cognitive functioning.
Dementia is a broad term that can't be defined as a one condition or experience. It describes various impairments that will impact a person's everyday life.
This can include a loss of memory, intellect, rationality and social skills. It can lead to an inability to do everyday things, make it hard to communicate, lead to confusion and frustration, and cause personality and behaviour changes.
Symptoms typically become progressively severe over time and there is no known cure.
It's important to be aware that dementia isn't simply a normal part of the aging process. It's caused by a variety of different diseases that damage nerve and brain cells, and this interferes with the ability of the cells to communicate with each other.
Who Is at Risk of Dementia?
Dementia primarily presents in people over the age of 65 but it can affect younger people too. In the UK, more than 900,000 people currently have a diagnosis of dementia, and more than 55 million people worldwide.
Known risk factors for increasing the chance of a person developing dementia are:
- High blood pressure
- High blood sugar
- Obesity
- Smoking
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Social isolation
- Physical inactivity
Types of Dementia
There are over 200 different types of dementia, each with a slightly different set of symptoms.
