As the
baby boomer generation gets older, the rates of Alzheimer's will get
higher. Jamie Matthews of the Alzheimer's Society of New Brunswick tells
CHSJ News it's projected that in the next quarter century, the number
of people suffering from the disease will more than double.
He tells
that even though it's a disease that's all around us, we still have
some misconceptions. One of which is that we often think dementia is
isolated to nursing homes, but in fact, 50% of those diagnosed still
live in the community. The other is that people with dementia can't make
new memories, which Matthews says is untrue.
Matthews
tells us there are over 13,000 people currently living with the disease
in the province, and in the next year alone it's predicted we'll have
2500 new cases. If you want to help out, you can sign up for Walk for
Memories, an Alzheimer's fundraising and awareness walk in Saint John. For event
details and to register, click here.