Is it coincidental that both Reagan and Thatcher had dementia?

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26. 1) AD, if that is what we are talking about, begins decades before diagnosis

so you are correct in thinking that the changes to the brain are happening many, many years before an official diagnosis is made.

2) While the primary target of AD is the hippocampus, which is involved in memory, there are other brain regions affected. I would ask whether the amygdala is affected, because that brain structure is involved in fear, and has been shown to be overactive in people with right-leaning political views. Which makes sense. Malfunction of the amygdala can be involed in paranoia and many other manifestations of fear, which the right wing certainly exhibits.

So, it is fair to be asking these sorts of questions, imho.

People with AD certainly undergo personality changes, and these changes are not just related to memory. They can start having wild mood swings, which they have never had in their life. In fact, personality changes are one of the early markers, before memory deficits manifest.