Changes in speech and language can help detect Alzheimer’s early. Here are five signs we should all be aware of.
10 million people are diagnosed with dementia worldwide every year. More and more often.
The disease of Alzheimer It is the most common cause of dementia and leads to a decline in memory and cognitive abilities.
It is a physical illness that causes the brain to no longer function properly and that worsens over time. Identifying the onset of Alzheimer’s disease early can help patients and caregivers find appropriate support and medical care.
One way to detect Alzheimer’s at an early stage is to observe changes in the use of language. This is due to the fact that new speech problems are one of the first signs of mental declinewhich may indicate the beginning of the disease.
Here are 5 early signs related to speech that may indicate Alzheimer’s disease:
1. Pauses, hesitations and vague language
One of the most recognizable symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is difficulty remembering specific words, which can lead to frequent or prolonged pauses and hesitations.
When a person with Alzheimer’s has difficulty remembering a word, they may speak vaguely, saying, for example, “thing,” or describing and outlining the word they are looking for.
2. Using words with the wrong meaning
Difficulty remembering the right word may be an early characteristic of Alzheimer’s.
People with Alzheimer’s may replace the word they want to say with a related word. For example, instead of saying “dog”, they can say “cat”, another animal in the same category.
In the early stages of the disease, these substitutions tend to be more general, such as saying “animal” instead of “cat”.
3. Talking about a task instead of doing it
A person with Alzheimer’s may have difficulty completing tasks. Instead of executing them, you can talk about how you feel about the task, express doubts or mention past skills.
You can say, for example: “I’m not sure I can do this”; or “I used to be good at this,” rather than talking directly about the task itself.
4. Less vocabulary variety
A more subtle indicator of Alzheimer’s disease is the tendency to use simpler language, relying on common, repetitive words.
People with Alzheimer’s often repeat the same verbs, nouns and adjectives, rather than using a broader vocabulary.
They can also frequently use linking words such as “the”, “and” or “but” to join sentences.
5. Difficulty finding the right words
People with Alzheimer’s may have difficulty remembering words, objects, or elements from a specific category.
This is, in fact, one of the cognitive tests used in diagnosing the disease.
For example, someone with Alzheimer’s may have difficulty naming different foods, body parts, or words that start with the same letter. As the disease progresses, these tasks become increasingly difficult.
A age is the biggest risk factor for the development of Alzheimer’s disease – the probability of developing the disease doubles every five years after the age of 65.
However, one in 20 people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is under the age of 65. This form is known as early-onset Alzheimer’s disease (or juvenile Alzheimer’s).
Although occasionally forgetting words is normal, persistent and worsening problems with recalling words, speaking fluently, or using a variety of vocabulary may be an early sign of Alzheimer’s disease.
Identifying these signs early is especially important in people at higher risk.
