Distinguishing between age-related memory loss and dementia

Early warning signs of dementia!

Professor Jason Karlawish (University of Pennsylvania, USA) shared on AARP, forgetting a doctor's appointment or a friend's appointment that was scheduled a few weeks ago is not a big problem. However, if you forget something familiar, on a predetermined day, it is a different problem.

You may be developing mild cognitive impairment, but it's not always a precursor to Alzheimer's dementia.

Of 100 people diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, 15 will develop full-blown dementia within a year, and about 50 will develop dementia within 4-5 years.

Normal age-related memory loss!

This is not a cause for concern. According to Kimberly Mueller, School of Public Health at the University of Wisconsin Madison (USA), if you can't remember pronouns instead of names in conversation, you keep saying "um" and "ah" and your brain is trying to find a word to express, it is a sign of early dementia.

This condition becoming more frequent can signal cognitive decline, leading to dementia due to Alzheimer's disease.

Early warning signs of dementia

According to Michael Rafii - Medical Director of the Alzheimer's Therapy Research Institute, University of Southern California (USA), difficulty recognizing everyday objects, including faces, is an early sign of serious dementia.

Normal age-related memory loss

Don't worry too much about dementia. If you keep misplacing your keys or are frequently distracted while driving, you're probably just absent-minded.

This is often due to an attention problem rather than a more serious cognitive condition. You can improve this condition even as you age by developing your brain's ability to focus.

Early warning signs of dementia

According to the Alzheimer's Association, misplacing and not being able to find things is a sign of dementia. If you find yourself misplacing things frequently, which happens more often as you get older, you can put them in a fixed place, says Ronald Petersen, MD, director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at the Mayo Clinic.

Early warning signs of dementia

Forgetting passwords or having trouble reading a tablet or smartphone screen can be caused by normal memory loss, vision loss, or poor lighting. However, a gradual decline in the ability to interact with one of these devices can be a warning sign of early dementia.

Having difficulty navigating digital devices may signal a decline in executive function, the ability to organize information and solve problems.

Early warning signs of dementia

Telling the same story at every party is fine, but asking the same question or repeating it over and over again at the same time is more problematic. You may just be distracted or having a bad day, but if you're constantly forgetting what you just said, you should see a doctor.

Family members are often the first to notice serious memory problems, so listen to your loved ones.

Early warning signs of dementia!

Not being able to remember recent conversations is completely different from not hearing them in the first place.

But both can be early signs of cognitive decline in older adults.

Mild to moderate hearing loss may be linked to a higher risk of dementia, a review in the medical journal The Lancet suggests.