ASK THE DOCTOR - Memory Loss
Question: I have noticed that my memory is getting worse with age, is that normal?
Most people experience changes in their memory with aging; but there are several other causes of memory loss. Medication side effects, alcohol use, depression and dementia are just a few of the causes of memory loss you may want to discuss with your doctor. In order to better understand normal “age related” memory changes, let me provide an overview on how your memory actually works (information adapted from FamilyDoctor.org).
The brain stores information in different areas that I will refer to as “compartments”. The three compartments are short term memory, recent memory, and remote memory. Information stored in the short term memory may include a phone number you were just given. Information stored in the recent memory may be what you ate for dinner yesterday. Childhood memories and details regarding last year’s family vacation are stored in the remote memory.
Your brain has over 100 billion neurons and an estimated 1 trillion additional structural cells. To better comprehend how vast 100 billion is, consider the human heart. The heart beats around 60 times per minute, 24 hours a day. At this rate, a person would have to live for over 3,000 years before the heart had beaten 100 billion times. Beginning at age 20, several thousand brain cells die each day. Alcohol use and head trauma accelerate this process. In addition to this loss of brain cells, the chemicals your body produces to store information decrease with age making it harder to recall the previously stored information.
Aging primarily affects the recent memory compartment which explains why you forget where you parked your car and why you can’t remember the name of the person you met earlier today. The short term memory and the remote memory are not as affected as much by age. Being unable to recall a particular persons name or struggling to find a word that later pops into your head are also examples of normal age related memory changes.
Memory changes that disrupt daily life such as misplacing things and being unable to find them, getting lost inside your house, or losing track of the day or season are not characteristic of age related memory loss. If you are experiencing any of these more serious memory changes, then write a note to yourself: “remember to tell the doctor what I am forgetting”.
