Diseases like Alzheimer’s and dementia which have been linked to genetics and associated with lifestyle behavior patterns have afflicted many people around the world. The signs of Alzheimer’s start off with symptoms of forgetfulness and memory impairment which is neglected at the beginning stages and once this aggravates is when people start rushing to the doctors for the checkups and tests. Identifying the disease at the early stages is critical and this can happen only when people start taking notice of their memory issues.

 

Erin Abner, an assistant professor at the University of Kentucky's Sanders-Brown Center on Aging and member of the faculty in the UK Department of Epidemiology, asked 3,701 men aged 60 and higher a simple question: "Have you noticed any change in your memory since you last came in?"


That question led to some interesting results. "It seems that subjective memory complaint can be predictive of clinical memory impairment," Abner said. "Other epidemiologists have seen similar results, which is encouraging, since it means we might really be on to something."


This  shouldn't necessarily worry everyone who's ever forgotten where they left their keys or papers and start panicking about Alzheimers or Demential but it's important to distinguish between normal memory lapses and significant memory problems, which usually change over time and affect multiple aspects of daily life.


The results are meaningful because it might help identify people who are at risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease sooner. If the memory and thinking lapses people notice themselves could be early markers of risk for Alzheimer's disease, we might eventually be able to intervene earlier in the aging process to postpone and/or reduce the effects of cognitive memory impairment. So if there is a repetitive memory degeneration don’t ignore it and visit the Physician.