Death Certificates and Other Information About Alzheimer's

Mom passed away about 6 weeks ago. I will be receiving her death certificate in the mail in the next day or two. Now you may wonder why this would be a subject for the blog. For so long, we have very sparingly used Alzheimer's Disease as the cause of death. Like my Mom, many people with Alzheimer's Disease develop pneumonia and die. They also die of eating disorders, weight loss, falls, hip fractures caused by decreasing ability to safely walk and loss of balance. These are often, however, used as secondary diagnosis and are not listed as the cause of death. We are beginning to understand, however, the significant, primary role, Alzheimer's Disease has in the death of our loved ones. The role is huge and it is the cause of death, more often than it is given credit.

Alzheimer's Disease DOES cause people to die. It depletes the body by depriving it of nutrition, depriving it of mobility, and other necessities of life on the cognitive level. More importantly, Alzheimer's disease kills brain tissue. The brain is the center that tells all of the bodies organs to function as they should. It tells the heart to beat properly, the lungs to exchange oxygen, and the pancreas to produce insulin. At the subconscious level, all bodily functions are regulated in their proper order, by the brain. As Alzheimer's Disease destroys the brain tissue, there is less and less functional matter to regulate these processes. Eventually the brain does not have enough tissue to direct the body and coordinate it's maintence so the the person dies. Mom was a perfect example. Her body was depleted- she weighed only 89 pounds. She was able to take only 1-2 steps per day and she was able to drink in limited amounts. Although she did develop a bronchitis/pneumonia, a stronger person, with reserves in her body and her brain, would have been able to fight it off. Her dementia was so progressed, her brain so devastated, it could not continue. We now recognize that people with Alzheimer's do die from the disease. It is the cause of death more often then we acknowledge. In spite of the diagnosis on the death certificate, I know Mom passed from this terrible disease. It was her time and I would not wish her back. I miss her terribly, but I do recognize her death came from Alzheimer's Disease. I will continue to do what I can for the people with this disease and for the families who suffer for and with their loved one with the disease. This is all any of us can do until there is a cure or a true treatment for the disease. We all must continue to struggle and move forward in our journey.

May God keep you in the palm of Her hand.