The true cost of dementia

I interviewed a person about dementia this week, I can't remember who he was, or even when it was but he made some very important points.

Dementia itself is no such laughing matter; it directly effects one in three people in the UK and costs the economy twice as much as cancer and three times as much as heart disease.

But the true cost of dementia - losing a loved one and seeing them degraded and their memory erode over a short period of time, is unimaginable for those who are yet to experience it.

"It's a really traumatic exprience for all of those involved, you have to be there for them 24-7 and virtually have to give up the whole of your social life," a 79-year-old man who was forced to put his wife into a care home told me.

"It started with little things like losing track of time and being fussy with her eating. It then got to the stage where she would wander outside in the middle of the night and she couldn't remember any of our grandchildren's names."

Dementia patients require round-the-clock care and unlike other illnesses the thing about dementia is, if you can't care for the patient yourself, a simple free alternative isn't provided on the NHS.

But the responsiblity falls with your local council. They first assess the person's income and joint assets to find out how much they will pay towards their carehome.

"They are taking away my children's inheritence and part of my retirement fund, things that I have worked towards for all of my life - it is unbelievable," the man added.

And you have to feel for him, because this is happening all around the country and is a current major national issue.

It is important that whoever gets in power in this years general election and sits down at number 10, doesn't forget about the true cost of dementia.