Alzheimer's

disease, the

most

common

form

of

dementia, is

progressive and, ultimately, fatal brain disease. It destroys brain cells,

causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior. The symptoms of
Alzheimer's are divided into "cognitive" and "behavioral and psychiatric."
Cognitive symptoms affect memory, language, judgment, planning and
other thought processes, and are usually treated with medications.
Parkinson's disease is a chronic, degenerative neurological disorder
that affects one in 100 people over the age of 60, and can be diagnosed
as early as age 30. The disorder of the central nervous system results
from the loss of cells in various parts of the brain, including a region
called the substantia nigra which produces dopamine. Dopamine is a
chemical messenger responsible for transmitting signals within the brain
that

allow

for

coordination

of

movement.

Loss

of

dopamine

for

transmitting signals within the brain that allow for coordination of

movement. Loss of dopamine causes neurons to fire without normal
control, leaving patients less able to direct or control their movement.
Symptoms can include resting tremor, slowness of movement, postural
instability, and rigidity. In addition, patients can suffer from mild memory
difficulties to dementia, mood disorders, constipation, sleep problems,
speech difficulties, unexplained pain and loss of smell.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that affects the
central nervous system, which consists of the brain, spinal cord and optic
nerves. Surrounding and protecting the nerve fibers of the central
nervous system is a fatty tissue called myelin, which helps nerve fibers
conduct electrical impulses. In MS, myelin is lost in multiple areas, leaving
scar tissue and sometimes damaging the nerve fiber itself. The inability of
nerve

fibers

to

conduct

electrical

impulses

produces

the

various

symptoms of MS. These symptoms are unpredictable and can vary from
patient to patient and from time to time.