Mixing Politics And Science Impedes Alzheimers Research

Ronald Reagan Alzheimer’s disease

Since the recent death of Ronald Reagan, Alzheimer’s disease has become a hot button issue for Republican and Democrats alike. Public opinion has swayed in favor of increased government funding to treat the devastating disease. This year alone, the government calculated that it would spend over $600 million on Alzheimer’s research. Some critics say that liberals are using the public’s sentimentality over a much-beloved president to push liberal policies on funding for embryonic stem cell research that Reagan would have opposed. Others, Reagan’s wife and daughter included, claim that embryonic stem cell research is hope for the future and compensation for their father’s death.

Proponents say that embryonic stem cell research has the potential to help scientists find a cure for Alzheimer’s disease and other devastating illnesses, such as cancer and Parkinson’s disease, which affect millions of Americans. They say that the best way to increase research is through increased funding. Liberals, in particular, favor the research, since they do not traditionally view embryos as the beginning of human life. Proponents also claim that opinion polls show that educated Americans favor the research, especially after the passing of Ronald Reagan. Alzheimer’s disease, proponents say, can only be cured if lawmakers rally together to support embryonic stem cell research.

Opponents of embryonic stem cell research, who are largely conservative and pro-life, claim that Ronald Reagan’s views differed from his wife. They say that no one can know for sure whether or not he would have favored the research, but during his term as president, he blocked funding on embryos and staunchly supported the pro-life movement. They also say that embryonic stem cell research may not actually help scientists treat or understand Alzheimer’s and that adult stem cells or umbilical cord blood may prove to be more promising. They believe that proponents’ claims of embryonic stem cell research as a miracle cure have been used to sway public opinion. In their minds, proponents care less about Ronald Reagan, Alzheimer’s disease, and scientific research than they do about government funding and their own liberal political agendas. They wonder if the public would really support embryonic stem cell research if they knew how much they would have to pay for it.

The current Bush administration has tried to avoid the topic of embryonic stem cell research, particularly since the death of Ronald Reagan. Alzheimer’s disease is unlikely to be an issue that will fade from the public’s consciousness, though. The number of people affected by the disease is expected to triple by 2050, placing an incredible strain on the healthcare system. In 2001, Bush supported funding research only on previously existing embryos, but he did not discourage private research. Some experts say, however, that this small endorsement of stem cell research has actually discouraged scientists from entering the field. Whatever the case may be whether embryonic stem cell research or adult stem cell research or umbilical cord blood will provide the key to solving the mystery of Alzheimer’s disease policymakers in Washington need to leave their political agendas at the door and focus on finding a cure. In that way, perhaps, Ronald Reagan’s death can be seen as a turning point.



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