1. Memory loss that affects day-to-day abilities: It’s normal to occasionally forget appointments, colleagues’ names or a friend’s phone number and remember them later. A person with Alzheimer’s disease may forget things more often or have difficulty recalling information that has recently been learned.
2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks: Busy people can be so distracted from time to time that they may forget to serve part of a meal and only remember later. A person with Alzheimer’s disease may have trouble completing tasks that have been familiar to them all their lives, such as meal preparation or playing a game.
3. Problems with language: Everyone has trouble finding the right word sometimes, but a person with Alzheimer’s disease may forget simple words or substitute words, making sentences difficult to understand.
4. Disorientation in time and space: It’s normal to forget the day of the week or your destination - for a moment. But a person with Alzheimer’s disease can become lost on their own street, not knowing how they got there or how to get home.
5. Poor or decreased judgment: From time to time, people can make questionable decisions such as putting off seeing a doctor when they have an infection. A person with Alzheimer’s disease may have poor or decreased judgment, for example not recognizing a medical problem that needs attention or wearing heavy clothing on a hot day.
6. Problems with abstract thinking: From time to time, people may have difficulty with tasks that require abstract thinking, such as balancing a cheque book. Someone with Alzheimer’s disease may have significant difficulties with such tasks, for example not understanding what numbers are and how they are used.
7. Misplacing things: Anyone can temporarily misplace a wallet or keys. A person with Alzheimer’s disease may put things in inappropriate places: an iron in the freezer or a wristwatch in the sugar bowl.
8. Changes in mood and behaviour: Everyone becomes sad or moody from time to time. Someone with Alzheimer’s disease can exhibit varied mood swings - from calm to tears to anger - for no apparent reason.
9. Poor or decreased judgment: From time to time, people can make questionable decisions such as putting off seeing a doctor when they have an infection. A person with Alzheimer’s disease may have poor or decreased judgment, for example not recognizing a medical problem that needs attention or wearing heavy clothing on a hot day.
10. Loss of initiative: It's normal to tire of housework, business activities or social obligations, but most people regain their initiative. A person with Alzheimer's disease may become very passive, and require cues and prompting to become involved.