Losing your keys,
or forgetting why you’ve gone into a room? These things happen to us all,
believe it or not, but they do tend to happen more as we get older – usually
because we’re thinking about something else. Among my peers it’s also fairly
classic to come to a standstill in the middle of a sentence because one of us
has suddenly forgotten the film or its star that was on the tip of our tongue a
nano-second earlier.
Normal memory problems
If this happens
to you, too, the good news is it’s not
a sign of dementia, according to memory experts. Instead, this kind of tip of
the tongue syndrome is what’s known as an “attentional problem” (which means
that the harder we try to remember the name of that film or celeb, the more
elusive it becomes) and though it does tend to happen more frequently as we get
older, it’s usually for the simple reason that we’re not really so interested
in ‘’what’s-his-name-from-that-film-with-the-ditzy-blonde-and-the-car-chase”.
The quick fix
In this case, the
best solution is to change the subject – always guaranteed to release that information,
albeit sadly when you no longer need it.
Prevention
There are things
we can all do to generally improve our memories. For example, the herbal remedy ginkgo biloba improves circulation, transporting blood and oxygen
around the body to wherever it’s needed – including the brain.
And, whatever
your age, you’re more likely to score well in a memory or brain function test
if you lead a healthy life:
. Exercise regularly (at least 30 minutes brisk walking five
days a week)
. Keep your
weight in the safe zone (BMI 19-25).
. Don’t smoke
. Be
health-savvy: avoid or treat hypertension, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes
– all of which can contribute to memory problems by interfering with circulation
in the brain, which is the most blood thirsty part of the body.
‘Started in your
40s, a healthy lifestyle like this will also reduce your risk of dementia in
later life,’ says Dr Marie Janson of Alzheimer’s Research UK
Need to know...
Of course one of
the main blocks to us taking steps to avoid dementia is that most of us imagine
it will never happen to us – even though it happens to one in 20 “other people”
once they pass the age of 65. By the time it is happening to us, we will be
unaware of it... But this is such a major health problem worldwide that,
according to Professor Sube Banerjee, professor of mental health and ageing at
the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London, so much is spent on treating those affected
that, ‘if dementia was a business instead of an illness it would be the richest
company in the world’.
It can happen to anyone!
There are an
estimated 35.6 million people with dementia worldwide and by 2050 the number
will rise to over 115 million, according to Alzheimer’s Disease International, making it something we really
can’t afford to ignore – as I was reminded just last week. Ironically, the day
after attending a dementia think tank for health writers, I turned up for a
yoga class with an empty gym bag, and no kit...
My excuse was
that I’d been too busy checking my blackberry and locating my keys while
simultaneously packing – or not packing – my bag. But that didn’t make it any less
disconcerting, and, as I struggled through sun salutations in my jeans and jumper,
I could only reassure myself that at least my yoga practice would clear the
clutter in my mind - so the day could only get better...!
