Many people believe that the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease are actually a part of normal ageing. To a certain extent, yes, the lines are blurred – as forgetfulness, one of the key symptoms of Alzheimer’s is a mark of old age, too. But, they also stand apart. Read on to find out how Alzheimer’s or dementia is different from normal ageing.

Short-term memory and learning new information

Ageing –

• If one experiences forgetfulness by forget names or addresses but also recalls them later on their own or when probed by someone – it could be just ageing.
• A tendency to misplace things like car or house keys, TV remote but eventually being able to find them could also mean the same.

Dementia –

• Forgetting about recent events or important details and not being able to recollect it even when probed by someone could be a sign of dementia.
• Developing a tendency to place things in unusual corners of the house such as placing the TV remote in the bathroom.

Problem solving and decision making

Ageing –

• Demonstrating a lack of agility to react to or work through things.
• Making a not-so thought-out decision every once in a while and getting momentarily distracted while multi-tasking.

Dementia –

• Being extremely confused while working through things.
• Consistently distracted and having a lot of trouble concentrating in addition to making bad decisions periodically.

Language

Ageing –

• Occasionally having a hard time trying to find the right word while conversing and displaying a tendency to get distracted while speaking – if too many people are speaking all at once.

Dementia –

• Displaying a frequent tendency of being unable to find the right word during a conversation and almost always being extremely distracted to partake in a conversation and complete their thought.

Orientation

Ageing –

• Demonstrating a tendency of being confused about day or the date but remembering the said information quickly by themselves.

Dementia –

• Finding oneself clueless about the day and time and displaying an inability to recognize familiar places.

Visual Perception

Ageing –

• Difficulty seeing because of optical issues like cataract

Dementia –

• Difficulty judging distances or making sense of complex patterns or reflections.

These symptoms aren’t a sure shot way of self-diagnosing oneself of dementia or Alzheimer’s. They are just a few tell-tale signs for you to spot and make quick decision about approaching a doctor in case you find yourself joining the dots.