They are related in that Alzheimer’s is the name of the disease, and dementia is a symptom of it. Think of the disease osteoarthritis. Pain is a symptom. Pain can be caused by many things though, such as related diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis, and completely different things, like migraines. Alzheimer’s is the disease and dementia (a loss of intellectual functions like reasoning, judgment and memory) is the symptom. But dementia can be caused by related conditions (such as Vascular Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia or Fronto-temporal disease) or by unrelated conditions, such as: Korsakoff’s syndrome from long-term alcohol use; or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy from frequent concussions. Alzheimer’s also causes functional losses and eventually death. Bottom line: Alzheimer’s is a disease and dementia/cognitive loss is a symptom.

No. First of all, it is very difficult to ingest something and have it cross the blood-brain barrier. That is one of the areas of research that scientists are always looking at when they are making compounds for new medications or treatments. Secondly, the research that was reported decades ago linking aluminum and Alzheimer’s were disproven many years ago as well. Bottom line: There are many myths about causes, but no it’s not aluminum. See this paper from the experts at the Alzheimer’s Association for more on this subject.

Colleague Dr. Henry Schneiderman and I put together a web-based self-assessment of risk factors in 2012. It was based on family history, lifestyle, and other factors such as depression. Today there are more formal screening tools but most focus on whether or not someone HAS dementia, versus their risk factors.

Risks can be categorized into two areas – things we can control, and things we cannot. There are two or three factors we cannot control: age (the older you are, the higher your risk); family history of dementia; and whether or not a first-degree blood relative has Down’s Syndrome or young-onset Alzheimer’s.

The rest are things we can (or can try to) control: weight/BMI, cholesterol, sedentary lifestyle, diabetes, untreated depression, smoking, drinking, concussions and other things which put our brain at risk – yes, if you have a brain, you are at risk for getting Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia.

The important message is that most of our risks we can try to control – we point this out because instead of saying, “My parents hated their statin medications,” we can say, “Hey doc, I know that high cholesterol is a risk factor for dementia, and I don’t want meds, so what are the other ways I can lower my cholesterol?” Bottom line: talk to you doctor and control what you can.

We used to think this, but we know it is not true. Some people may lack insight or be in an emotional state of denial, but the majority of people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia are aware of changes and are aware of how others respond to them when symptoms are evident. I always say, people with dementia have two fears – they don’t want to look “crazy” and they don’t want to sound “stupid.” Many of their behaviors come from awareness of symptoms as they try to cover up or compensate for forgetfulness or confusion. Bottom line: People usually know there are changes in their cognitive abilities, but they still have needs for dignity, respect, to have fears and concerns addressed, and to have love, laughter and happiness in life.