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Memory loss, a part of aging, can be fought

By: Bryant Stampford

The Courier-Journal, August 12, 2001

There are lots of jokes about declining memory as part of aging. But when it's up close and personal, and the lessened memory is yours, it's not quite so funny.

I've seen this in my 86-year-old mother. She's sharp as a tack in many ways, but her memory is not nearly as potent as it used to be, and the decline is progressive.

It has been interesting to watch her cope with the gradual loss over the years. At first she was frustrated and obviously annoyed at herself when things escaped her. But now it's nice to see her laugh at herself and shrug when something slips by. She has accepted that loss of memory is part of moving along in life, but she hasn't given up trying to cling to every little bit that she can.

In recent years, there has been a great upsurge of interest in the decline in memory as we age. Much of the interest is triggered by aging baby boomers like me who see what's coming and want to avoid it, or at least reduce its impact.

Another factor is fear of Alzheimer's disease. Fortunately, although memory loss occurs with Alzheimer's, loss of memory doesn't necessarily mean you are going in that direction.

The ABCs of memory

Memory is a broad term with lots of meanings. First, there is the working memory, which allows you to briefly retain information. This memory is limited in capacity, and research suggests that seven bits of information (a typical telephone number) are a pretty hefty load. You can store more information in your working memory if it is broken up in groups rather than clumped.

Your working memory is fleeting; you retain information until something else comes along and bumps it out. We all have experienced looking up a telephone number, closing the book and then, while dialing, being distracted and forgetting the number.

You selectively pass along certain working memories to your short-term memory. Folks who are good at remembering the names of people they've just met at a cocktail party, for example, have mastered the art of moving new names into their short-term memory. It may require mentally repeating the name, or associating the name with something that is meaningful. To do this requires concentration and motivation.

If there is information you want to have at your fingertips over the long haul, you engage your mind to memorize it and shift it into your long-term memory. You might write it down, or repeat it to yourself over and over. The more you use the information, the more ingrained it becomes. Scientists believe that long-term memory involves physical changes in the brain in which the memory becomes encoded.

As we age, long-term memory usually remains pretty much intact. This is why an elderly person may be able to tell you what she wore to a party when she was 9.

Short-term memory (what you had for lunch a few hours ago, etc.) fades, however, and this can lead to confusion. The loss might be caused by a decline in neurotransmitters in the brain -- chemicals that help nerves communicate with one another.

Working memory stays with us through the years pretty well too. But when it begins to fade (and you forget to turn off the stove or the spigot in the sink), the loss is serious and living independently is threatened.

The memory muscle

Although loss of short-term memory is likely with aging, it's not inevitable, and it doesn't have to be severe. Often our memories are not as acute because things are not as important as they used to be. We have a broader view of life and don't necessarily feel the need to be on top of everything.

We also don't have the pressures we had. In school, teachers and professors forced us to memorize lots of facts. We could do it because we had to. Now that we are older, we can still probably do that, but there are few, if any, occasions where it is necessary.

When we are older we tend to forget (no pun intended) that we used to forget stuff when we were younger too. Where did I put those darned keys? My glasses? The TV remote? But when you get older you pay more attention to your forgetfulness because such lapses (you fear) may now signal a decline in capacity, rather than a simple oversight.

The good news is there is evidence that, like your biceps muscle, your memory can get stronger and stay stronger with exercise.

If you think your memory is on the decline, take steps to improve your capacity. Commit to paying more attention to the details of your life by making mental notes. Associate and combine facts so that they have more meaning, and take the time to stop and visualize what you are trying to remember.

Add mental exercises too. Reading is great, especially if you are reading things that are meaty and make you think. Games such as chess or checkers, cards, etc., are great. Learn new things, take classes, conquer a foreign language or a musical instrument. My mother does crossword puzzles and writes lots of letters to friends and loved ones. I taught her recently to play solitaire on the computer -- her first computer experience. Cut down on TV time. The mind goes into automatic pilot and coasts, the last thing you want to be doing hours each day.