Aging or Alzheimer's?

A Doctor's Personal Guide to Memory Loss, Cognitive Decline, and Dementia

Published by Skyhorse
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

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About the Book

Finally, a doctor cuts through the fear and confusion to answer the question every senior asks: “Is this normal aging, or something worse?”

For millions of aging adults, the line between a harmless "senior moment" and the early signs of dementia is a source of profound anxiety. Every misplaced set of keys or forgotten name raises the same question. In Aging or Alzheimer's?, veteran emergency physician and researcher Kenneth Frumkin, MD, PhD, provides a definitive, evidence-based guide to understanding memory loss and cognitive decline.

Dr. Frumkin writes from a uniquely powerful perspective: not only as a clinician with over three decades of experience caring for older patients, but as a fellow senior citizen confronting his own cognitive concerns. His journey from the "worried well" to a deeper understanding of Subjective Cognitive Decline fueled a three-year odyssey through more than 1,200 scientific papers. The result is a fully referenced and verifiable guide to memory loss, cognitive aging, and dementia.

Inside, you'll find:
  • The difference between normal age-related forgetfulness, subjective cognitive decline, and mild cognitive impairment (MCI)
  • When to seek medical attention, and what to expect from your primary care provider or a memory specialist
  • The pros and cons of neurocognitive testing, biomarker analysis, and genetic screening
  • A frank assessment of anti-amyloid drugs, the lifestyle changes that modify real risk factors, and the supplement claims that don't hold up
  • How to recognize pseudoscience and predatory marketing aimed at frightened seniors
  • The emotional and practical realities of caregiving, legal planning, and coping with a diagnosis, for patients and families alike

This is not a collection of memory tricks. What sets the book apart is its honesty: Dr. Frumkin does not offer false hope, he offers knowledge, the antidote to fear.

Whether you are worried about your own memory, caring for an aging parent, or planning for a future of healthy aging, this book will equip you to face tomorrow with confidence, wisdom, and hope.

About the Author

Product Details

  • Publisher: Skyhorse (November 5, 2024)
  • Length: 384 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781510780156

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Raves and Reviews

“This book is like a conversation with a trusted friend who provides practical knowledge and well-researched advice on topics not often discussed. My recommendation is that everyone over 65 should read it now."
—John E. Prescott, MD, FACEP, Professor Emeritus and Former Dean, WVU School of Medicine; Former Chief Academic Officer, Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)
 
“In this practical, informative, and humanistic book, Dr. Frumkin helps us understand what normal aging means for our memory. Memory lapses don’t equal memory loss. Memory changes don’t always portend cognitive decline. This book combines evidence with experience to help us ask questions like ‘what is normal for age?’ and ‘what is memory?’ and ‘what is aging?’”
—Shari Barkin, MD, MSHS, Endowed Professor and Chair of Pediatrics and Physician in Chief, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University
 
“[Dr. Frumkin’s] transparency, passion for accuracy, humor, and intellect make for a complex read that still makes for easy understanding while providing hope through knowledge.” 
—H. Nicholas Augenstein, MD, Internist and Geriatrician; Physician Emeritus and Associate Professor, Eastern Virginia Medical School, retired
 
“This is quite a book. It covers a lot of ground and in exceptional depth. It is extremely well documented with current references…. For the ‘Worried Well,’ it can give great comfort, or at its worst, confirm the fact that someone may be of the ‘Worried Un-well.’”
—Nick Augenstein, M.D., Internal Medicine; Associate Professor EVMS, retired; Physician Emeritus
 
“Dr. Frumkin’s book is for you if you want an honest, scientific, and practical explanation of the existing data, concepts, causes, and treatments of age-related memory problems, including the large variety of potential cognitive deficits that may affect people as they get older…. You will also want to lend it out, but be sure to get it back.”
—Alan Robert Ross, PhD
 
“[Dr. Frumkin’s] perspective on neurodegeneration/dementia is both scientific and personal and will give much-needed insight to the readers. This book will provide readers with new information and support them with what they might already feel or know.”
—Saket Saxena, MD, Center for Geriatric Medicine; Co-Director Geriatric Emergency Department, Cleveland Clinic
 
“Frumkin breaks new ground and establishes significant scientific and practical benchmarks for the study of one of the most vexing societal and mental health care challenges of our generation. Scientists and physicians who study this issue will be using his framework to guide and assist their efforts in addressing the issues affecting the lives of generations of people to come. Both health care professionals and interested readers will be well advised to add Frumkin’s seminal work to their libraries.”
—Barbara A. Mori, Ed.D., author and former Director of Special Education, and Allen A. Mori, Ph.D., author and former Dean of Education at Marshall University and California State University-Los Angeles
 

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