Dementia rates are increasing due to factors beyond just an aging population, including poor diet and lifestyle choices.

“So, it is a major worry and I think it's one of the the major fears that all of us have. You know, obviously you've got cancer is one fear, but I think the other really bad one is ending up with dementia because nearly everyone knows somebody with dementia.”

Anthony Hopkins believes that portraying the fear and confusion of dementia is more effective when you have witnessed similar experiences in your own family.

“I knew how to play it because I'd seen my own father going through it 40 years before. And you think the hopelessness, the emptiness and the sadness of it all and the facing finally the knowing that this is it because none of us get out of this alive.”

The initial signs of dementia, such as misplacing keys, are often indistinguishable from normal aging, and families should use simple, annual neurocognitive tests to track potential progression.

“So, if you see that, you have to invite them and say, look, you know, I'm noticing a few different things in our next general visit to the doctor. Can we maybe mention it to them? And they'll do a neurocognitive test.”

Caregivers should prioritize allowing individuals with dementia to maintain their independence as much as possible for as long as they can.

“one of the the worst things that you can do as like a caretaker is taking away someone's Independence that has Alzheimer's like if we told my dad you know you can't mow the lawn even if it looked like [ __ ] like just let him mow the lawn like CU then he will he will get that like dopamine in his br”

Dementia should be understood as a spectrum disease rather than a binary condition because its presentation and severity vary significantly between individuals and across different brain regions.

“There really is a spectrum aspect to Alzheimer's and dementias, which people don't recognize. They think of it as an all or nothing disease, and that's not true. Much like autism, it really can span the spectrum from very mild impairment that doesn't get worse to severe impairment that kind of deter”

Biologic molecules like TB006 can significantly reverse symptoms of dementia as evidenced by improvements in Mini-Mental State Exam scores.

“I'm talking about significant swings in their mini mental status exam numbers, like from being in the high 20s to going down into the teens. That means people were starting to remember their name again and they can have conversations again and they can function again.”