My sincere thanks to Fernando Olivares for sponsoring my writing this week. This piece doesn’t contain sponsored content, and was written entirely by me.
This week’s sponsorship slot was booked months in advance by Fernando, and he got in touch recently to enquire about doing something unique: instead of promoting his business or products, he wanted to use this slot to promote a charity.
We had a conversation about it, and it transpired that both of our families have been affected by Alzheimer’s Disease, the most common form of dementia. People afflicted with this neurodegenerative condition lose their memory, and can suffer from mood swings, behavioural changes, and language problems. It’s a devastating condition, both for the sufferer and for their loved ones. Dementia affects about one person in ten, and nearly half of those over 85 years of age.
Consequently, we’d like to encourage you to support Alzheimer’s Research UK, a charity that funds research into dementia at various universities. We have an ageing global population, and dementia-type illnesses will only become more and more of an issue. By funding scientific research into the causes and possible treatments for dementia, we can one day rid the world of this debilitating disease.
This is a subject that’s very important to me, because my wife Lauren’s extended family has been touched more than once by dementia. It’s something she’s witnessed first-hand, and she’s frightened by the possibility of falling victim to it herself one day. That’s a chilling thought for me, as you can appreciate.
As a writer, the idea of losing my memory and my command of language is also terrifying. The author Terry Pratchett suffers from a rare form of Alzheimer’s, and supports this same charity.
I’m donating the entire sponsorship fee for this week to Alzheimer’s Research. My sponsorship broker, Syndicate, have also waived their commission, so the entire amount will go to charity.
I’d like to thank Fernando Olivares once again for his generosity and for proposing this idea, and I’m also grateful to the Syndicate for their support.
If you’d like to contribute towards scientific research into Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia, please do visit Alzheimer’s Research UK.
