Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Friday, June 24, 2011
(UNDATED) - Singer Glen Campbell’s disclosure that he has Alzheimer’s makes him one of more than five-million Americans with the disease and the number is only going to grow.
One in six senior citizens has Alzheimer's. But half of Americans over 85 have it.
That means when the baby boomers approach that age in the next decade, the number of diagnosed cases is expected to rise.
Linda Altmeyer with the Alzheimer's Association of Indiana says your family members are likely to notice before you do.
She says it's the difference between forgetting where you left your keys and forgetting what a key is for.
Campbell performed in Carmel three weeks ago, with his diagnosis still a secret.
Reviewers wrote he appeared disoriented and repeatedly flubbed lyrics.
His guitar playing wasn't perfect either, but Altmeyer says it's not surprising his problems were less noticeable there; she says he's played his songs so long that they require less reliance on memory.
But Altmeyer says the 75-year-old singer's disclosure of his diagnosis may encourage more people who have considered getting checked out to stop putting it off.
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