THE ONGOING STUDY OF ALZHEIMERS Imagine your greatest fear of a loved one growing old. Could it be a fear of your dearest going through tremendous pain and suffering, or perhaps just the fear of him or her dying? Now imagine that this loved one, with whom you have shared many wonderful memories, no longer recognizes you. It kind of worries you a bit now, doesnt it? Although Alzheimers disease can be very hard on those stricken and their families, do not feel as if your case is a hopeless one. There are studies being conducted as to the cause and possible prevention methods of this disease. One such study has taken place at the convent of the School Sisters of Notre Dame on Good Counsel Hill in Mankato, Minnesota. This study is being conducted by University of Kentucky scientist David Snowdon and has been appropriately named The Nun Study. In this location, research is being done to learn more about the memory-altering disease known as Alzheimers. This convent was a prime location for the study because of the basically uniform lifestyles of those therein. With these women living the very similar lifestyles, there were not as many other factors to consider as studies performed with a vast array of people as subjects. Moreover, another problem that many studies suffer from is lack of volunteers. The Nun Study had the good fortune of discovering many eager volunteers willing to donate their time and bodies in the hopes of affecting a positive outcome. A great step was taken in the study when researchers discovered two file cabinets containing personal records of the now elderly women being used in the study. This discovery helped greatly, a common problem being that in these studies subjects are usually only monitored in later life. Although researchers found no definite way to make an early life determination as to whether subjects would suffer from Alzheimers, they did recognize several strong predictors of the disease in...
