Memory loss in older people: causes, signs and recovery

Causes

Memory decline occurs with age, but this does not mean that this does not happen in young people.

A recently popular cause of cognitive decline is information overload. Each person analyzes a large amount of information every day; students and teachers, “mind workers,” are especially at risk.

With daily large volumes of data, the brain gradually begins to perceive information superficially and scatter attention, not concentrating on one object. Superficial perception does not allow the material to linger in memory for a long time.

In addition, functional disorders occur against the background of:

• organic, mechanical damage to the brain, deterioration of blood supply;
• viral and bacterial diseases;
• chemical dependence, adverse reactions to taking medications or their incorrect selection;
• unhealthy lifestyle, physical inactivity, bad habits, overeating;
• stress, depression, anxiety;
• asthenic syndrome;
• anxiety disorder;
• fatigue, exhaustion;
• disturbed sleep patterns;
• hormonal imbalance;
• diseases, internal disorders of other systems, for example, digestive, cardiovascular;
• changes in the usual way of life, a traumatic situation.

If you cannot remember a word or date, the name of a new acquaintance, then this does not indicate pathology. This is probably a consequence of fatigue or selective memory.

Memory losses

Encephalitis

Diabetes

17757 August 21

IMPORTANT!

The information in this section cannot be used for self-diagnosis and self-treatment.
In case of pain or other exacerbation of the disease, diagnostic tests should be prescribed only by the attending physician. To make a diagnosis and properly prescribe treatment, you should contact your doctor. “Memory lapses” mean complete or partial loss of memories.

However, such an interpretation may imply memory loss, or may indicate an inability to remember this or that fact at a given moment.

Varieties

Memory is ensured by the functional activity of all parts of the brain and includes various processes - memorization, storage (or, conversely, forgetting), recognition and reproduction. Disruption of any of these processes will lead to memory defects.

It is the fight against forgetting (an important process that protects the brain from excess information) that ensures the retention of important data.

Two more processes – recognition and reproduction – make it possible to “bring to the surface” the required information.
Thus, memory loss, or lapses, refers to the inability to recognize or reproduce data stored in the brain. Memory lapses (or amnesia) may occur over time. Retrograde
amnesia is characterized by the inability to remember events preceding an injury or illness;
anterograde amnesia
is accompanied by loss of memory for events that occurred after the illness.
There are also retroanterograde
amnesia (a combination of the first two) and
fixation
, characterized by the inability to remember current events.
If memory for events at the time of injury or illness is lost, they speak of congrade
amnesia.

Possible reasons

Memory lapses do not always indicate any disease.

Rapidly changing information is absorbed only by short-term memory and is stored for several days. An example of such memorization is preparation for an exam: a large amount of data is absorbed in a short time and just as quickly disappears from memory.

Storing information for long periods of time requires processing and encoding.

Only after this the necessary data is recorded in the brain structures.

In the presence of psychological factors

(stress, nervous overstrain) or constant fatigue and lack of sleep, concentration is disrupted, which impairs the memorization process.
Memory lapses often occur as a defensive reaction to emotional stress.
A typical example of this condition is sudden memory loss during exams or when speaking in front of an audience. These failures refer to transient memory impairments, but in some cases they may indicate a circulatory disorder in the area of ​​the posterior cerebral arteries, which most often occurs with alcoholism and drug addiction

.

Damage to even small areas of the brain due to traumatic brain injury

also leads to memory loss or blackouts.
In this case, retrograde amnesia occurs, which lasts several hours before the injury. Longer fixation amnesia is also possible - several days immediately after the injury, which is noted when the patient is clearly conscious. A few days after the injury, memory is restored in most cases. Surgeries on the temporal lobes of the brain
lead to transient memory impairment .
Patients with epilepsy
forget not only the seizure itself, but also the short period of confusion after it.

In some cases, it is precisely such memory lapses that give reason to suspect epilepsy during non-convulsive seizures.

Memory disorders may be caused by metabolic disorders in the central nervous system.
Deterioration of brain function occurs with a lack of oxygen due to cardiopulmonary failure
, toxic damage due to
liver and kidney failure
.

Oxygen starvation of the brain after a sharp rise or fall in blood pressure is often accompanied by a sharp deterioration in memory.

The same effect has a decrease in glucose levels during fasting and
diabetes
. In addition, with diabetes mellitus, angiopathy develops - damage to blood vessels, which aggravates nutritional deficiency.

A sharp deterioration in memory with failures occurs with hypothyroidism

, which is caused by a lack of iodine in the body.
Deficiency of vitamin B12 and folic acid
is also accompanied by memory impairment.
Vitamin B12 is necessary for the regeneration of myelin, a substance that covers nerve fibers and ensures their functioning.
Destruction of the myelin layer is accompanied by slowing of nerve impulses and memory impairment. Memory may be affected in patients taking certain medications

. These include anticholinergics (atropine, scopolamine, platiphylline, metallisir), antidepressants and antipsychotics. Steroid hormones have a destructive effect on brain structures and, accordingly, memory. Recent studies show that people who take steroid hormones for a long time (for example, bodybuilders) have serious problems with visuospatial memory. Information about the negative effect of steroid hormones on memory should also be taken into account in patients with bronchial asthma and arthritis.

Tumors

, infectious diseases that lead to damage to the central nervous system sometimes have an irreversible effect on memory.
Such diseases include encephalitis
and
meningitis
.

Inflammation of the membranes and tissue of the brain leads to the destruction of nerve structures and, as a result, to impairment of cognitive activity, speech and memory.

There are memory impairments associated with age.
Normally, the first signs of memory decline appear after 50 years of age, which is associated with a weakening of concentration and a decrease in the processes of encoding information. However, if memory loss progresses sharply, more serious illnesses may be suspected. First of all, memory loss can occur with senile, or senile, dementia. With dementia, diffuse damage occurs to the cerebral cortex (for example, in Alzheimer's disease
) or subcortical structures of the brain (
Parkinson's disease, Huntington's chorea, multiple sclerosis, encephalopathy
).

The earliest sign of Alzheimer's disease is loss of memory for recent events.

This symptom may later be accompanied by speech and cognitive impairments. As the disease progresses, loss of fixation, anterograde and retrograde memory develops. Memory for events that happened a long time ago is retained for the longest time. With Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis, a person spends a lot of time remembering past events or facts. At the same time, he gets tired quickly, it is difficult for him to remember new information or master motor skills.

With repeated repetition of new material and the establishment of semantic analogies, the memorization process becomes easier, but requires constant reinforcement.
Diagnostics and examination To diagnose the causes of memory impairment, an assessment of the patient’s mental state, a thorough analysis of the data identified during the survey, and the dynamics of the development of the disease are necessary. Significant information can be obtained using various laboratory tests and instrumental examinations, as well as assessing the patient’s neurological status. Brain CT and MRI data are used as an objective criterion.

Selectivity of memory

Selectivity is a natural property of memory. We forget what has no value or significance for us or causes unpleasant emotions. Yes, sometimes these are important work moments, if they are not of subjective interest.

The same thing happens with attention. We easily notice and analyze what interests us. It is not surprising that concentration decreases when you need to write a report at work or tinker with numbers for several hours. Think about what exactly made you think about the deterioration of memory and attention. Maybe something has lost value for you?

Alzheimer's disease

If you ask the average person what is the name of the disease that often affects people in old age, he will probably be among the first to remember Alzheimer’s. This is one of the types of dementia, and it is more common than others. The pathology belongs to the category of neurodegenerative. The official description was compiled in 1907. The disease is most often detected in those over 65, but there is a rare form of the early type. If there were 26.6 million officially registered patients in 2006, by 2050 there will likely be four times as many.

Like premature disease, in old age Alzheimer's pathology begins with barely noticeable manifestations. Regression is usually relatively slow but steady. At an early stage, short-term memory is the first to suffer; a person can hardly remember what he has learned recently. As the disease progresses, amnesia extends to long-term memories. Speech problems are recorded and cognitive functions suffer. The patient cannot navigate the area and cannot provide for himself. Progression of the disease leads to death.

Forgetfulness

It is worth suspecting pathology if you do not remember an event of the past day, but accurately describe an incident three years ago. Or if you cannot reproduce the information that was just given to you. In these cases, consult a neurologist. In other cases, we are talking about the idea of ​​forgetfulness caused by overwork.

Forgetfulness has nothing to do with medicine. Forgetfulness can be a character trait or occurs under certain conditions. This is not an independent diagnosis, but it is worth paying attention to possible causes of forgetfulness: stress, chronic fatigue, poor diet, lack of sleep.

What to do

If memory problems appear at a young age, then the first step is to determine the cause of this condition. Appropriate treatment will be needed, since as the disease progresses, a person will cease to be a full-fledged member of society. But you cannot choose your own medicine, since all drugs have contraindications. The type of medication, dosage and course duration should be determined by the doctor.

Many recommend the use of physiotherapeutic methods in the form of electrophoresis and the administration of glutamic acid through the nose.

They continue to develop and implement new methods to combat poor memory.

It is recommended to visit a psychologist who will help improve the process of understanding and remembering information, involving all parts of the brain.

If the patient does not remember and reproduces the phrases out loud, then the doctor teaches him to mentally imagine images of the phrases and memorize the text material. This is a long and difficult version of working on yourself, but it gives good results.

To support memory in the initial stages of development of disorders, they resort to nootropic drugs. They contain components that affect nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, improving the ability to concentrate and restoring memory. Such drugs are used to dilate blood vessels in the brain for all types of memory disorders.

If, after determining why memory deteriorates at a young age, no significant health problems were found, then forgetfulness will be easy to deal with.

Observations show that those people who often suffer from a bad mood experience memory deterioration faster, so doctors advise remaining optimistic.

An excellent option for improving blood flow in the vessels of the brain is physical activity. Thanks to sports, you get rid of tension and normalize cell nutrition.

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When eating meat, it is better to give preference to beef, turkey, and offal. They contain a large amount of iron. This element is found in vegetables, fruits and seafood. Therefore, if you consume them in reasonable doses, many health problems will not arise. Sea fish and natural oils must be present in the diet. But there are some carbohydrates to watch out for. Thanks to potatoes, black bread, durum pasta, the brain is saturated with energy. But with the help of cakes, white pastries and sweets, memory cannot be improved.

It is important that the body receives B vitamins.

If you are worried about very poor memory at 30 years old or younger, then it is useful to carry out memory training:

1. When receiving new information, you should delve deeply into it so that it is better imprinted in your memory.
2. Connect the received data with known images, events, objects. It is useful to put information into the form of a poem. While searching for a rhyme, the brain will be trained.
3. When going to bed, carefully analyze every detail of the past day.

Gradually, such training will bring good results.

If the first manifestations of memory deterioration appear, then you need to visit a neurologist, neuropsychologist or psychotherapist. They will conduct an inspection and prescribe appropriate tests to determine the cause of the violations.

You can also take action yourself. It is known that problems with memorization are observed if a person does not pay due attention to the information being conveyed, remembers it fleetingly or does not take it seriously. To eliminate this syndrome, you need to constantly work on yourself and train your brain, concentrate on certain details, write down events, keep a diary and do mental calculations.

If the examination shows the presence of pathological processes, then therapy is carried out in accordance with the diagnosis. The prognosis is made depending on the stage of development of the disease and the characteristics of the body.

Treatment

Neurological disorders are treated with medication after a full examination using diagnostic equipment.

As for the deterioration of attention and memory due to fatigue, I suggest working with the following exercises:

1. Try performing a familiar task with your eyes closed. Try to move around the room in the dark. Don’t forget to be careful, secure yourself with a wand or an assistant.
2. If you are right-handed, try writing and brushing your teeth with your left hand. If left-handed - right-handed.
3. Get to know mnemonics. Mnemonics is the science of ways to remember information.
4. Take an abstract concept such as “love.” Come up with as many options for visualizing it as possible using words or touches.
5. Play association games. Write down any word, select an associative series for it.
6. Make lists, plans, tables. But don't overuse them. Rely on them, but try to remember everything yourself.

In addition, it is useful to play chess, checkers, memorize poetry, prose, solve crosswords, and logic problems. Buy a collection of puzzles and develop your memory.

Reading articles and popular science literature has a positive effect. Start learning a new topic or foreign language that interests you. Give preference to printed publications. Try to watch less TV or work on the computer.

Get rid of the habit of rushing and trying to do several things at once. Otherwise, you will constantly be haunted by a feeling of anxiety, thoughts that you have forgotten something. Eventually, forgetfulness will become real. The more actions you do “automatically,” the higher the risk of memory deterioration and absent-mindedness. Train yourself to be mindful. Watch what you are doing, pronounce the actions. Do you know where the comb or keys are now? Try to make even such everyday little things conscious.

When it appears

First of all, stress forgetfulness manifests itself under the following circumstances:

• psychotraumatic situations;
• increased nervous tension;
• anxiety disorder;
• panic attacks;
• obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Also, memory impairment can be provoked by excessive anxiety, constant preoccupation with something, or obsession. During such periods, a person, as a rule, even if he wants to, cannot retain in his head information that is not related to the object to which all his thoughts are directed.

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Can forgetfulness be treated in older people?

Rehabilitation therapy is necessary for all patients with amnesia, regardless of the severity of the condition. Partial memory loss in older adults has a favorable prognosis for improvement. Treatment tactics depend on the symptoms and include the following methods:

• taking medications;
• physiotherapy;
• physiotherapy;
• use of folk remedies.

To activate brain functions, improve thinking and memorization, doctors recommend:

• creating a positive attitude when communicating and watching programs;
• performing exercises to train the brain;
• treatment of chronic diseases;
• getting rid of bad habits;
• increased physical activity;
• walk outdoors;
• good sleep;
• solving crossword puzzles;
• development of fine motor skills;
• Reading books;
• learning poetry.

Drug correction of memory

Medicines help improve brain activity and correct impaired functions in old age. Doctors prescribe them individually, taking into account the symptoms and severity of the disease. The following tablets for restoring memory in the elderly are particularly effective:

Folk remedies for improving memory in the elderly

Exercises to activate brain activity

Regular exercise helps prevent memory impairment. Classes restore the ability to think, remember, and increase concentration.

How does this manifest itself?

In order to remember the information received, a certain amount of attention and sufficient concentration are required.
In a state of stress, a person is simply unable to concentrate on anything and retain information coming from the outside world in his head. Due to heightened experiences, people overly concentrate on their own thoughts, their attention is scattered, reality seems to be covered with a transparent “veil”. For example, being in a state of shock after the death of someone close to you, a person gives the impression of being stunned, he practically does not react to external stimuli, his speech is slow, his eyes are clouded. It’s as if he’s watching what’s happening from the side. Once the shock wears off, people usually cannot remember what they did or felt while in the “detachment” state. Memory lapses after stress tend to cause severe anxiety. With a condition such as OCD, people often unconsciously “miss” even important information. This is because the disorder causes people to focus only on their intrusive thoughts and how to eliminate those thoughts. Patients, in order to alleviate their condition and calm down, are forced to carry out special “rituals” - obsessive actions. Although such actions “protect” the patient (in his opinion), they are excessively exhausting. In order to be focused on anything else, patients with OCD simply do not have the strength left. They are forced to think only about how to protect themselves from imaginary dangerous situations and eliminate obsessive thoughts.

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If for minor deterioration in memory processes it is enough to carry out special exercises, then with serious violations you should immediately seek professional help and undergo the necessary treatment. Otherwise, the situation may worsen significantly - leaving stress in the past does not mean an immediate restoration of memory functions. Therapy for memory loss due to stress may include taking medications, as well as visiting a psychotherapist.