Speaking out about Alzheimer’s

"There’s still a reluctance to diagnose and there’s still a reluctance to talk about it." Alzheimer’s Manawatu¯ manager Donna Hedley

Two out of three Kiwis are affected by Alzheimer’s disease in some way and Manawatu¯ people created a sea of purple to show they’re worried about those who suffer in silence.

More than 300 people flooded the streets in Palmerston North on Saturday for a Memory Walk, while even more were estimated to have turned out in Feilding the day before.

Alzheimer’s Manawatu¯ manager Donna Hedley says being forgotten by someone you care deeply about is a jarring experience and people’s attitude towards accepting help has to change.

Too many people in Manawatu¯ refused to admit they suffered from symptoms relating to dementia, compromising their ability to buy more time, Hedley said.

Researchers were trying to work out a way to slow Alzheimer’s disease, she said, and had taken in people at the very earliest stages of the disease to look at their genes and what they were eating.

Ultimately, what was good for the heart was good for the brain, she said.

Hedley said the brain had a rich network of blood vessels and was especially vulnerable.

‘‘Up to 40 per cent of people go undiagnosed. There’s still a reluctance to diagnose and there’s still a reluctance to talk about it,’’ Hedley said.

‘‘We need stigma.’’ to remove that

An ‘‘outstanding’’ showing from the community at the recent Memory Walks was one step towards achieving this, Hedley said.

In the past five years, the number of Alzheimer’s patients coming through Alzheimer’s Manawatu¯ had doubled.

Alzheimer’s New Zealand chief executive Catherine Hall said recent data from 35,500 home care assessments showed how dramatically dementia changed the lives of the people living with it, their families and friends.

‘‘We urge people living with dementia, and their family and friends, to get help early. Your local Alzheimer’s organisation are only a phone call away.’’