Posted 28 January 2008 - 08:55 PM
Thank you everyone for your inputs on this topic, in me it has sparked many ideas I wish to further research. I had a grandfather die of AD, we in the family thought he was 'faking it' or was just so lazy that he brought it on himself (he only watched TV, let my grandmother feed him, dress him, schedule his day). The issue after I grew up (he died when I was in my teens) became quite a mystery to me, and another thing on my list to 'watch out for'.
Missminni, I'm sorry about your mother. I was holding the hand of my stepmother when she passed away, she had suffered 2 years deterioration after a stroke. Even though she looked at peace finally, I could not squelch the emotional response of why I couldn't have done more (through diet, supplements, advocacy --anything). The only solace I had in that situation was the joy she had from my 3 year old during her last months, who gave her kisses--talked to her daily and caused her appearance to change when she was in the room (I cared for my stepmother in my home, the last 6 months of her life, she was bedridden--it was a lot of physical 24 work, relieved three days a week for a few hours by home health care workers). But, I'd not thought of a possible connection between drugs that effect neurotransmitters, in particular acetylcholine--I will look into that further. What I've garnered from the reading I've done in response to the mystery of my grandfather's death, is that a myriad of things cause what we call AD--and my gut feeling is that it is a normal part of aging that in some ways can be offset, depending on how your live and what your genes are.
Leonid, thank you for engaging the author, and pointing out this book. Elrond--the work at Methuselah's new forum is exemplary.
This is an important topic for all of us, and I look forward to learning more about it and sharing anything I find (that I don't feel has been covered here) with everyone.