Kirk R. Daffner - Improving Memory: Understanding age-related memory loss

IMPROVING MEMORY

SPECIAL HEALTH REPORT

Medical Editor

Kirk R. Daffner, M.D., FAAN

J. David and Virginia Wimberly Professor of
Neurology, Harvard Medical School
Chief, Division of Cognitive and Behavioral
Neurology, Brigham & Womens Hospital

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Christine Junge

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Published by Harvard Medical School

Anthony L. Komaroff, M.D., Editor in Chief

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Dear Reader,

Years ago, I saw a patient in the beginning stages of dementia. She still had moments of great clarity, and in one of those times she lamented, Im vanishing as a person. Her words have stuck with me because they seemed like such a lucid description of the impact of dementia on a person.

In many ways, our memories shape who we are. They make up our internal biographiesthe stories we tell ourselves about what weve done with our lives. Our memories tell us who were connected to, who weve touched during our lives, and who has touched us. In short, our memories are crucial to the essence of who we are as human beings.

Memory loss also affects the practical side of life. Remembering how to get from your house to the grocery store or how to do the tasks that make up your job allows you to take care of your needs. Thats what makes dementia so scarylosing your memory means both losing your ability to live independently and not being able to remember your past experiences. Its not surprising, then, that concerns about cognitive decline rank among the top fears people have as they age.

And theres no getting around the fact that the ability to remember does change with age. Many of these changes are normal, and not a sign of dementia. As youll read about in the section of this report titled Forgetting: Whats normal?, many of these changes increase as the brain ages. Unfortunately, some people have the more serious memory problems associated with dementia. We will review the different forms of dementia, too.

If your memory is still healthyeven if youre forgetting a bit more than youd likenows the time to commit to protecting your brain from ill consequences. When it comes to the brain, one key to successful aging is what experts call cognitive reserve, the brains capacity to withstand damage associated with disease or injury. Although scientists once thought that the adult brain did not grow new brain cells (neurons), we now know that the brain keeps making new cells and connections throughout life. This plasticity, or ability to change, means that you may be able to have an impact on neuronal growth. This report discusses some new research on this subject and gives examples of memory strategies that may help.