As our population ages, new challenges face the elderly generation and the puzzled doctors struggling to cure them. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, afflicts roughly 5.2 million people age 65 or older in the United States. One in nine people age 65 and older have the disease. Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disease causing brain cell death and a gradual shrinking of the brain. People with Alzheimer's disease experience memory loss, difficulty solving problems, and confusion. Currently, there is no cure.

Alzheimer's has baffled scientists for years as they have looked at different factors that may predispose individuals to the disease. Certain genes, such as the APOE-e4 gene, have been identified as potential risk genes. Harvard investigators have recently suggested that a virus can trigger an immune response that causes a buildup of plaque in the brain and leads to Alzheimer's. Scientists have made tremendous progress in Alzheimer's research in recent years, but there is still significant work to be done.

Until a cure is found, elderly people will continue to struggle with dementia. Many lose their abilities to live independently and rely on family members, nurses, and assisted living facilities to survive.

Although science is crucial to understanding the biological mechanisms of Alzheimer's, it's important to remember that real people are suffering from this disease. Elderly people are often left to live by themselves as their children grow up, move away, and start families of their own. They may be left deprived of the human interaction and stimulation that is necessary to exercise the brain and keep it healthy. Suffice it to say, old people are lonely. While we may find a magical pill that will make them better, we still need to spend time with them and not forget all that they have given us.

In high school I volunteered with the elderly community in my town. At Harvard, I have continued volunteering with the older generation through Alzheimer's Buddies, a program that matches colleges students to people with Alzheimer's and supports weekly visits to the nursing homes in which they live. As I walk into the nursing home, I like to think that I am doing good by making even the smallest impact on my buddy. But I realize that there is still so much to be done. There are dozens of other residents who sit idly on the couch, week after week, dozing off or mindlessly watching musicals on the television.

I found Alzheimer’s Buddies after losing my grandmother who had dementia for several years before she passed away. She was always the most outgoing and friendly person, but I saw how her dementia affected her. Even though we would have the exact same conversation several times in the span of only a few minutes, I loved spending time with my grandmother because I knew how important human interaction and stimulation was for her. Even though she slowly started to forget my name, I know that she still loved me deeply up until I said my last goodbye to her.

There are so many people who need help in the world, but elderly people are often the most forgotten group. The pleas of refugees, children, and victims of terror call to our hearts louder than the elderly population does.

So go spend time with your grandparents. Go volunteer at a nursing home. Don't forget about the elderly generation because one day you may be in the same position and you will crave the human interaction that many of them have lost. Work in a hospital and find a cure for Alzheimer's, but keep in mind that giving a person a pill won't always make his or her life better. Love and compassion are often the best medicines.

In all of my time spent with elderly people, I have learned more about life than I could ever have hoped for. Although people with Alzheimer's eventually lose their long-term memory, some of the people in the early stages of the disease can still remember their childhoods. They fondly reminisce on their experiences, giving me something that I hope I can one day live up to.

Old people may be losing their memories, but they're still people who love just as deeply as any of us. I volunteer with the elderly with the hope that I can make a difference in their lives, but oftentimes I find they make even bigger impacts on my life.