The Lonely Road For Latinos With Alzheimer's Disease

African Americans and Latinos are more likely than whites to have Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Yet minorities suffering with Alzheimer's disease and their families are all but ignored when the media discusses the disease. We are invisible. We are rarely included in uplifting profiles and stories that can serve to educate and empower caregivers of color. For Latino families, where language and culture can be a hindrance not only to early diagnosis, but also in finding an avenue to care, this education is key. We desperately need information, a road map to navigate this deadly illness, and the knowledge we are not alone on a journey that it is ripping our mothers, fathers and grandparents away from us. My mother was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease after years of decline that I did not connect with the disease. I had no idea that Latinos are one-and-a-half times more likely than whites to develop the condition and African Americans are two times more likely. That's partly because our stories are not really told in the mainstream media. There are no front-page stories or TV news magazine pieces. Lower levels of education and income delay the crucial diagnosis until much later stages, which only makes it harder for families. My mom is 83. She is an immigrant from the Dominican Republic. She has an eighth-grade education. Her decline was slow and began with judgment issues. All her life, she's been something of a dramatic, so signs of her judgement sl...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news