Women's Alzheimer's Movement at Cleveland Clinic

Let’s get the bad news out first: Alzheimer's is fatal, and there is no cure. There’s no treatment plan either—it's the only disease without any effective drug or intervention to slow progression of the disease. In the U.S., more than six million people suffer from the neurological disorder. And if you’re a woman, the numbers get progressively worse: Two out of three Alzheimer’s patients are female.

The disease is devastating. Memories, relationships, the comfort of what’s familiar—even someone’s personality—slowly fade to black. And one often realizes the gravity of the situation when it’s a step too late.

But here is the good news: Up to 40% of Alzheimer’s cases are preventable through healthy habits, like diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. And for women in particular, who bear the brunt of this condition—both as patients and caregivers—the landscape is changing, leading to better awareness and better research.

All of which brings us to our new #VBGIVESBACK partner, the Women's Alzheimer's Movement (WAM) at Cleveland Clinic, and its founder Maria Shriver, who has been leading the charge in recognizing women’s increased risk for this type of dementia. The medical community, for instance, has long thought the higher rate in females was simply a result of our longer lifespan. It wasn’t till 2010—a mere 12 years ago—when Shriver published a groundbreaking report on the disease that we learned this wasn’t a factor and, instead, our biology and the way we age are.

That report and its findings are what spurred the award-winning journalist—whose own father had Alzheimer’s—to launch WAM in 2016. “I wanted to answer the question of why,” says Shriver, who merged the organization with Cleveland Clinic, the renowned academic medical center, last year. “Why do women’s brains make them more vulnerable? This wasn’t part of the narrative then.”

From now to the end of June, #VBGIVESBACK will donate proceeds from every online order to the nonprofit, which is dedicated to women-based Alzheimer’s research, education and advocacy. We hope you join us in supporting this worthy cause. As Shriver says, “Women are at the epicenter of the Alzheimer’s crisis. That’s why we must be at the heart of the solution.”