“Dealing with Dementia” is a series running today and the next few weeks in The Tifton Gazette.

It is a series of articles reported by CNHI – the parent company of The Tifton Gazette – and looks at dementia concerns nationwide, in breadth and in detail, from numerous perspectives. The articles include reporting by Asia Ashley, this newspaper’s state reporter.

Dementia includes various brain disorders that affect memory, thinking, behavior and emotion. Symptoms can include memory loss, difficultly performing familiar tasks, problems with language and changes in personality.

Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia.

While there is no real cure for dementia, support is available for people who suffer with it and those who help take care of them. More than 46 million people live with some type of dementia.

Unfortunately, social stigmas exist because the public is often uninformed or misinformed.

Often times, sufferers are marginalized and dehumanized.

We encourage our readers to be sensitive and caring both toward individuals who suffer from the various forms of dementia and their caregivers whose lives are often disrupted in ways that are difficult for anyone who has not gone through it to understand.

We also encourage financial support for the Alzheimer’s Association and other organizations that provide support services.

We hope you will read each story of the series, presented in our print editions and online at tiftongazette.com.