Who hasn’t occasionally forgotten to grab their house keys, mobile phone, or an item from the shopping list? We’ve all forgotten things several times a day or misplaced them because we can’t remember where we left them. But how can you tell if this is normal due to mere distraction or if it pertains to a more significant issue?
What is memory loss?
Memory loss is the inability to recognise previously acquired information. This apparent “dysfunction” sometimes simply relates to a brain readjustment mechanism to avoid the overload of irrelevant information. However, over time, our ability to remember progressively decreases.
Types of memory loss
During ageing, there is a decline in cognitive efficiency, which can be associated with memory loss considered normal. Those forgettings primarily related to age that do not hinder daily activities may occur sporadically without being linked to any illness. Depending on the duration of the induced memory loss, it can manifest in two ways:
- Transient memory loss: There are certain situations that can cause symptoms like forgetfulness or short-term memory loss. For instance, physically, this may be due to deficiencies in certain nutrients, alcohol consumption, dehydration, reactions to specific substances, or head injuries. Emotional situations such as periods of stress, traumatic events, or significant occurrences can also impact memory.
- Permanent memory loss: Non-reversible memory loss occurs in states of dementia or certain conditions such as Alzheimer’s.
Sudden memory loss
States of confusion and sudden memory loss lasting several hours, also known as transient global amnesia, typically occur as a consequence of occasional alert states.
During these episodes, a person is unable to create new memories, and therefore cannot recall recent past events or their current situation. For example, not remembering the reason for going to a particular place or how one arrived there.
This generally affects middle-aged or elderly adults and these episodes usually improve within hours, with some cases seeing a return of complete recall of the events that occurred during the episode.
Causes of memory loss in adults
The most frequent causes of memory loss stem from changes in brain function due to natural ageing, mild cognitive impairment, or dementia. However, other factors also lead to memory loss, which may or may not be reversible, as previously discussed. Let’s consider the most common causes of memory loss:
Medical factors affecting memory
- Ageing: As we age, changes occur in brain function, notably a decline in memory performance. Generally, there is a decreased ability to store new memories, a greater demand for repetition of stimuli to retain them, and all of this means that individuals must exert more effort to recall facts or memories.
- Mild cognitive impairment: This involves memory alterations that exceed what is expected due to age but are less severe than in cases of dementia, not significant enough to affect daily living. However, over time, this may progress to dementia.
- Dementia: In these cases, memory loss is characterised by a “total erasure” of an event, not just details, showing severe cognitive dysfunction. This disruption does affect daily tasks, as it can create difficulty recalling how to perform routine actions, how to get to familiar places, or forgetting responsibilities like paying bills or switching off appliances, etc.
- There are other causes that may induce memory loss, such as specific substances causing confusion or forgetfulness, or conditions like hypothyroidism, vitamin B12 deficiency, mild brain injuries, or traumatic brain injuries, strokes, etc.
The impact of stress and depression on memory
Stressful factors like certain situations in personal life (the passing of a family member, separations or relocations, for example), workplace pressures (specific demands or increased responsibilities), as well as other environmental or dietary changes can also interfere with memory formation and retrieval. This occurs because during these moments of stress, worries keep attention focused on that particular situation. These states, known as stressors, affect memory in various ways, with some cases showing enhanced memory capacity when the stressor is of a mild to moderate intensity and short duration.
Affective and mood alterations such as depression or anxiety can interfere with attention and concentration, potentially leading to an inability to create and retain new short-term memories.
In cases of depression, it can cause memory losses similar to those seen in dementia, although the main difference is that in memory losses associated with depression, there is awareness of the memory loss. Important or recent events are not forgotten.
Managing memory loss
Our brain is a muscle that requires nutrients for its proper functioning. Therefore, maintaining a healthy diet, along with adequate rest and exercise, will benefit the entire body, including the brain, throughout our lives. In cases where cognitive functions begin to decline, there are several strategies we can implement to help ourselves, such as:
- Making an effort to pay attention or learn new information each day.
- Following a daily routine and making lists of tasks to be completed.
- Avoiding situations of stress or learning to manage them with activities that help relax the mind.
- Getting enough sleep and trying to maintain a consistent sleep routine each day.
- Seeking help if we experience persistent negative feelings or sadness.
- Spending time with friends or family and engaging in group activities.
- Doing exercises to train the brain such as puzzles, word searches, recalling past events, reading, associating images with uses or dates, etc.