Breakthrough on care funding

margaretclare

Hi Ed

Is there an explanation of why 2/3rds of dementia sufferers are women? Is it simply a matter of demographics i.e. there are more women in the affected age-groups than men?

There was a former local MP, a very well-respected man called Bernard Braine, who was an Alzheimer's sufferer and died in a local BUPA home. There's a storyline in 'The Archers' at the moment, and it's a man who is affected. The actress who plays his wife has actually had the same experience with her late husband who was an Alzheimer's sufferer, and as far as I can see the development of his condition is portrayed very realistically and exactly. As against all that, one can think of the author Iris Murdoch.

I would be very interested to know if there are any preventative measures one can take, or whether one simply has to accept this as a likely scenario, a 'wyrd', or unescapable destiny.

Re being forced to take medication, again I don't know about care homes, where I understand, you lose all human rights and have less rights than a convicted criminal. I do know that in hospital or at home, no one is obliged to take any prescribed medication. I had this very recently in my hospital stay. Painkillers were routinely prescribed but if you take painkillers they cause constipation, which must be avoided in the condition for which I'd had surgery. I therefore refused all painkillers, especially anti-inflammatories taken without food (DH had experience of that, when they caused a duodenal ulcer!!!) I wasn't being heroic, just that I wasn't in enough pain to feel the need for painkillers, and I'd rather eat fruit, veg and wholemeal bread than take laxatives. I also refused to wear TED stockings and again, I was told 'we can't force you'.

What happens with someone with mental health problems, I don't know. Do they assume you can't make a rational choice? Are all the sufferers that far gone, or do some of them retain some mental capability?

Margaret

Bogof_Babe

Panorama on 3rd Dec was all about enforced medication given to alzheimers patients in care homes. It is still available on the BBC website if you didn't see it. I've just watched it, and was quite horrified.

Farway

margaretclare wrote: »

Hi Ed

What happens with someone with mental health problems, I don't know. Do they assume you can't make a rational choice? Are all the sufferers that far gone, or do some of them retain some mental capability?

Margaret

From the experience with my mother, it is assumed they can make a rational choice, in the early stages this may be a "good thing" as it involves them in the process.

However as it progresses some of the choices they may make are completely bonkers, like cancelling the care they are getting, or refusing to turn fire on in mid winter [and thus freezing to death if left], dialing 999 and asking where the dinner is

Eventually it becomes apparent that they are incapable of making any rational informed choice, and then relatives, mental health or Social must make the rational choice for them.

When they get so far gone they are basically zombies and unable to communicate, which may be the case with some on the TV programmes, but that of course would not make dramatic tele

Savvy_Sue

Margaret, you asked about how to avoid dementia, I'm sure there's nothing fool-proof, and there's probably lots more I don't know about, but keeping physically active, keeping your weight down, and keeping your brain active are all recommended. I'm sure Vitamin D3 plays a part too

So you're probably doing all you can already in your present state of health! Keeping your brain active includes doing things like crosswords and Sudoko - mercifully I can manage the former if not the latter! :rotfl:

(We used to regularly do the crossword in the Guardian at work, and for the days when no-one had brought it in we had a large book of crosswords. For some reason lunches have been less sociable lately, but today we had an engineer in who remembered when our offices were arranged differently, and as he was there at lunchtime he was roped into the crossword! Great fun!)

EdInvestor

margaretclare wrote: »

Hi Ed

Is there an explanation of why 2/3rds of dementia sufferers are women? Is it simply a matter of demographics i.e. there are more women in the affected age-groups than men?

I've not seen an explanation .Obviously women live longer, and are more likely to end up living alone, and thus need care because of 'wandering'.

Theories about causes:
http://alzheimers.about.com/cs/diagnosisissues/f/faq_causes.htm

I would be very interested to know if there are any preventative measures one can take, or whether one simply has to accept this as a likely scenario, a 'wyrd', or unescapable destiny.

Genetics may be part of it, but nutrition also seems to play a substantial role - with lack of vitamins B and E mentioned as possibly implicated Diabetics have apparently a much higher risk of getting it, so insulin is a possible factor too.But they have tested for a role for estrogen and nothing so far found apparently.
Lack of use of the brain/no social activity is certainly implicated. We'll have to get all these old ladies to start posting on the internet.

On the nutrition aspect, would you say that women now in their 70s and 80s suffered on this front, during the war or later?Are they likely to have deprived themselves of food to give more to their husband and or children? Any other reasons why they might have low levels of essential vitamins and minerals compared with men?

margaretclare

This is very interesting.

The main cause is advancing age - at my age the risk is 3.5% of getting it, which means that the risk of NOT getting it is 96.5%. Family history - no one in my family developed it, few lived long enough (I've lived longer than most of my female forebears). Mother-in-law had it, though, so that risk is transmitted to my daughter.

As regards nutrition, yes, I do take the supplements omega-3 and vit D3 as advised by Ted Hutchinson. I did a survey recently which he recommended and omega-3 was the only thing that I was short of, because I don't eat enough oily fish. I eat quite a lot of fresh fruit, so Vit E levels are OK. Also nice fresh wholemeal bread, so I get all the B vitamins.

The question of nutrition in WWII is very interesting, and I guess it depended on where you lived and what your circumstances were. Women in their 70s now were children then. We all had school milk and school cod-liver-oil, I remember this very well! Also, under wartime rationing it has been said that the national diet was the healthiest ever, because there was little red meat and sugar, but enough of the staples of life and no one was supposed to go hungry. Where I lived in the countryside, we were poor, but we never went hungry, and all food was sourced locally and was fresh - not like now, when so many people eat 'ready-meals'. Boys and girls (people now in their 70s) would eat the same, and men now in their 80s would probably have had Forces rations, which would have been adequate.

Have just seen that the author Terry Pratchett has an early form of the disease.

Diabetics have a higher risk of everything, every darned thing!! Funny that wasn't mentioned at the recent DiabetesUK weekend that DH and I went to. So far, he shows no signs of getting this.

Once I get my new reading-glasses later this week I'll go back to my language studies - Latin and Anglo-Saxon. Gotta keep the brain cells ticking over somehow!

Margaret

Errata

Causes of dementia? Like any other illness - probably a mixture of nature and nurture. Some older people lapse into a lifestyle of tea and toast and telly, which clearly leaves them vulnerable to many health problems.
It's worth remembering that dementia isn't like pregnancy: clear one day and full blown the next. For some people the development of dementia is quite slow and is part of the natural ageing process in the same way that gradual loss of vision and hearing is and something we have in common with dogs.
My mum was unable to make choices about anything much as she'd lost the capacity to understand what it would mean if she didn't take her heart medication, but was quite happy to accept what was given to her. Her husband has very impaired short term memory but still has the capacity to chose whether he wants to go to hospital for a routine scan.

Perhaps the difficulty is that more people are living longer and developing a degree of dementia and fewer families are able or willing to care for them by either moving in with gran/grandad or getting them to move into the family home. Consequently more people are aware of dementia and find it a terrifiying prospect.
It's not something I worry about; it would be as pointless as worrying about getting cancer again - I have a healthy lifestyle and a good GP and there's nothing more I can do to avoid the health problems that come with age.

margaretclare

Errata wrote: »

.....more people are aware of dementia and find it a terrifying prospect.

It's a topic that is constantly raised on boards such as this one, usually under the heading of 'how to conceal funds from the council/the taxman' and similar. In addition, programmes such as the recent 'Panorama', which I didn't watch - I was in bed while that was being screened!

When my MIL developed it in the mid-1970s there was really very little information or discussion about it. Radio 4 'You and Yours' did a series on it some while ago, and they said that it wasn't until people like Ronald Reagan came out openly and talked about it, that the condition was really recognised, although Alois von Alzheimer had defined the condition a century ago.

It's not something I worry about; it would be as pointless as worrying about getting cancer again - I have a healthy lifestyle and a good GP and there's nothing more I can do to avoid the health problems that come with age.

Me too. I do my best to stay healthy and don't worry until things actually happen. Would never succumb to a tea-toast-and telly lifestyle - perish the thought!

Margaret

Errata

I think people in the past accepted dementia as a normal part of ageing for some people, and they were looked after by their families. That was certainly the case for my great-great grandma, great grandma and grandma.

It certainly isn't new - see Shakespeare !

seven-day-weekend

Some people, like Terry Pratchett and my sister, develop Early-Onset Alzheinmers in their late 50s. My sister lived with it for nearly twenty years until she died last year at the age of 75 (the age when most people who are going to get it are just developing it). No wonder they call it 'the long goodbye'.

My sister used to be a district nurse. She knew what was going to happen to her.

So she had got something to worry about.

I hope Terry Pratchett can be helped.