If creators of the latest Alzheimer’s Society TV and radio advert wanted to crack the taboo about dementia and get the nation talking, it’s scored a solid 10.

In it, a man delivering the eulogy at his mother’s funeral refers to her dying “again, and again and again” during her slow decline from dementia.

She “didn’t die once”, he said, as she forgot how to make her legendary roast dinner and couldn’t remember his name as she degenerated.

This advert has been so divisive, disturbing, upsetting and much debated causing angst to those caring for loved one with Alzheimer’s and dementia who are very much still alive and loved.

My first view made my blood run cold. Watching photos of the woman, young and full of life then confused and a shell of her former self, was distressing.

People caring for family members with Alzheimer’s said it felt like a knife in the chest.

As if people aren’t terrified enough of dementia and its effects. The Long Goodbye was like watching a horror film. For those looking after people in early stages felt they were looking at a grim forecast of what was to come.

Others have described the advert as dehumanising for people living with the condition.  
Complaints were made to the Advertising Standards Authority; social media has been raging and people are extremely angry.

But we do need provocation to talk more about dementia as it affects - and will continue to affect –a rising number of us, especially as we’re all living longer.

Talking brings understanding.

One fact to emerge this week is that Alzheimer’s is the leading cause of death in the UK – a statistic only known by one in 10 people in the UK according to the Alzheimer’s Society.

One person in three born today will get dementia.

So, banishing the stigma is crucial but is portraying dementia as a long slow death causing distress to everyone who loves them the right way to educate?

Or will this advert push people into retreat frightened and fearful rather than seeking diagnosis because they are terrified about the impact on their family and friends, and being a burden for years, dying “again, and again, and again.” 

We know that people can live well with dementia for years with the right support and help.

We know it is a cruel, indiscriminate and devastating disease to all it touches, leading to sufferers fading away.

What we might not be aware of is how low Alzheimer’s is prioritised. Just 31p is spent on dementia research for every pound spent on cancer research. 

What has made cancer funding rise is people being more open about it.

The Alzheimer’s Society estimates 900,000 people have dementia in the UK.

Its CEO, Kate Lee, admits the advert tells the unvarnished truth about the devastation.

“It’s not an easy watch but it’s an important one and the film was co-produced with many people who have been directly impacted by dementia,” she said.

Its aim is to raise awareness of the condition – and it’s certainly achieved that, but in the right way?

Shock value and dementia don’t sit well together. Perhaps this is a case of an exuberant enthusiastic advertising agency convincing a client that extreme is effective.

I’m all for powerful messages. Wishy washy doesn’t work, but in this case, it goes too far.

Dementia is a condition we need to be more open about understanding, accepting and discussing.

I hope that this advert won’t backfire, and fear hides it once again, and awareness goes backwards.

Dangers of constant gaming

If your teenager has been sitting in a darkened room from morning and into the night all holiday so far shouting and staring at her or his gaming screen, a warning from the best esporter (yes, esport is a thing apparently).

20-year-old Jaden Ashman was a teenage gaming addict who turned into a millionaire esport champion winning more than £1.4million, buying his mum a house when he was just 15.

But his ‘skill’ left him physically and mentally frail and alone, with relationships neglected.

The Fortnite Millionaire was the youngest esport player to win a $1m but the price he paid was being so undernourished by neglecting his diet as he sat for hours and struggling to walk to the shop from his house.

Wolfiex, as he was known, a silver medallist at the Fortnite World Cup in 2019, had a huge following but “I was very unhappy with who I was,” he said.

When pain his hands from constant use of the controller forced him in to take time off, he realised the negative impacts of gaming on his health.

With his 'whole life' revolved around the game, he would “get up, not even eat or shower and hop straight on my PC to grind.”

His unhappy mum tried to stop him, pushing him to his schoolwork and being driven to throw out a console and snap a headset in their rows.

Jaden thought he knew best and won a fortune at what his mum had thought was “just wasting my time.”

But when he was out of breath walking to the shops and felt isolated and alone, he knew he needed balance in his life and turned to fitness.

Jaden’s testimony of the harmful effects of constant gaming needs distributing to every young gamer.