Celebrities have become the royalty in the United States. We watch their every move, we know all their secrets, their problems. When a celebrity has a health problem, we find out all we can.
In the case of Alzheimer's, finding out that a celebrity is a sufferer can have a positive impact on people. The knowledge that a famous individual is suffering from something our grandfather, aunt, uncle, mother, father is suffering from makes them more human to us.
Awareness of an illness is greatly increased when it is revealed that a celebrity is suffering from it. The most famous person in the United States with Alzheimer's is President Ronald Reagan. He and his wife, former First Lady Nancy Reagan, made the announcement to the American public on November 5, 1994.
Nancy Reagan has become the most famous caregiver in the world. At a time when most retired politicians and their wives are relaxing and reminiscing about the past, Nancy Reagan faces the daily struggle of seeing her husband lose the essence of the man he once was.
In 1995, not long after the announcement was made, Nancy Reagan began making public service announcements sponsered by the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer's Association. Being a public figure, Mrs. Reagan found it a civic duty to support and educate all citizens about this devastating disease.
Other celebrities known to have suffered from Alzheimer's Disease include actors Dana Andrews, Arlene Francis, Edmund O'Brien, and also the composer Maurice Ravel who composed the famous "Bolero."
The second most recognizable person to have Alzheimer's in the United States is the late actress Rita Hayworth.
After the death of her mother in 1987, the daughter of the late Rita Hayworth Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, became a driving force in the fight against Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. Princess Aga Khan is a tireless worker in the struggle to increase research and find new treatments and better drugs. She serves on many committees, hosts an annual charity gala, and is also president of Alzheimer's Disease International.
There are other less well known people who have lost their lives to AD and their loving family members have taken up the fight against this disease.
The mission of The John Henry Carr Alzheimer's & Aging Foundation is to provide funds for direct care services to families and sufferers of Alzheimer's.
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