A SON has taken on a running challenge to raise money to help research a disease which means his dad no longer recognises him.

Ian Beddis, from Ross-on-Wye, has run 10km every day for ten consecutive days to raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK.

His dad, Austin Beddis, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2010 and has progressed so much that he no longer recognises his family.

Ian, 39, said: “My dad hasn’t recognised me for two years. He gets very confused and often looks so scared – it’s heart-breaking to see.

"He helped make me who I am. Now I’m a dad myself, I can see everything he did for me, but I can’t say thanks.”

Austin had worked as an engineer and was an intelligent and methodical man, but it soon became clear that he was having memory problems.

His wife Myrtle cared for him for the first few years after the diagnosis but she was hospitalised with breast cancer in 2013.

It was then that the family realised how reliant Austin was on his wife, so they made the decision to put him into respite care.

Myrtle thankfully pulled through, but it became clear that the strain of caring for Austin was making her ill, so it was decided that he should stay at the care home.

Now 83, his symptoms have progressed significantly. He is bed-bound, can no longer talk and does not recognise his family any more. Myrtle sadly passed away last year.

Ian, who works as a safety manager for a recycling plant, said: “Since I started the challenge, lots of people have got in touch to tell me their experiences of dementia – even people I haven’t seen in years. It’s become apparent how many people have been touched by dementia. It’s a scary condition and people often don’t talk about it because of that fear, but it’s important we do."

Ian, who is married with two young sons – Callum, six, and Finley, three – filmed videos as he ran each day.

The challenge is part of a wider initiative called Running Down Dementia, launched by Alzheimer’s Research UK and parkrun, which challenges participants to run 100km over the summer.

Ian has raised over £650 so far for the UK’s leading dementia research charity. Alzheimer’s Research UK powers research into prevention, diagnosis and treatments for dementia. There is currently no cure or treatments which can stop or slow the condition.

To sponsor Ian, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Run10410.