But the truth is that occasional memory blips in your 30s — and even 40s and 50s — rarely signal a serious problem, says Susan Lehmann of the Geriatric Psychiatry Clinic at Johns Hopkins Hospital. “It's typically more about distraction and how much information the human brain can handle at one time,” she says.
Alzheimer disease commonly affects older people, but early-onset Alzheimer disease can affect people in their 30s or 40s. It affects memory, thinking, and behavior. Although there is no known cure, early diagnosis and treatment can lead to better quality of life.
People with the most common types of dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia, usually have a mild form of aphasia. This often involves problems finding words and can affect names, even of people they know well.
Lyden: Often people over the age of 50 begin to forget names and specific information. They may misplace their keys more often or need to pause and remember directions.
Dementia has been diagnosed in people in their 50s, 40s and even in their 30s. It is sometimes called early onset dementia. Younger onset dementia is similar to other types of dementia in many ways.
The Mini-Cog test.
A third test, known as the Mini-Cog, takes 2 to 4 minutes to administer and involves asking patients to recall three words after drawing a picture of a clock. If a patient shows no difficulties recalling the words, it is inferred that he or she does not have dementia.
Introduction: The five-word test (5WT) is a serial verbal memory test with semantic cuing. It is proposed to rapidly evaluate memory of aging people and has previously shown its sensitivity and its specificity in identifying patients with AD.
For example, sometimes changes in memory might be due to a medication side effect or an existing or developing health problem, such as depression, anxiety, sleep problems, heart disease, infections in the brain, brain tumor, blood clots, head injury, thyroid disease, dehydration, or vitamin deficiency.
FAQ about ADHD and forgetfulness
A: Yes, there's a link between ADHD and forgetting words or losing your train of thought during a conversation. It all has to do with how the brain processes information and plans out the subsequent verbal response.
Brain fog is characterized by confusion, forgetfulness, and a lack of focus and mental clarity. This can be caused by overworking, lack of sleep, stress, and spending too much time on the computer.
Many common conditions and even some substances can cause forgetfulness. Lyndsay shared some: Depression, anxiety and stress – “These are common causes of forgetfulness,” Lyndsay said. “Stress and mood disturbances can act as a distraction and make it difficult to focus, which can lead to memory problems.”
The answer is you are likely to have been “dual-tasking” just before speaking. It might have been because you were thinking about the words you wanted to say and something else at the same time. Or maybe you were concentrating on listening while trying to think of what to say.
In the early years of life, the brain forms more than a million new neural connections every second. By the age of 6, the size of the brain increases to about 90% of its volume in adulthood. Then, in our 30s and 40s, the brain starts to shrink, with the shrinkage rate increasing even more by age 60.
Short-term memory loss is when you forget things that have happened recently, such as an event or something you did, saw, or heard. It can be caused by a number of factors, including a nutritional deficiency, sleep deprivation, depression, side effects of some medications, or dementia.
One part of the body affected by anxiety and stress is the nervous system, which plays a primary role in basic functions like memory and learning. As a result, persistent anxiety and memory loss are associated.
The short answer is: yes. Research shows that there is a link between depression and memory loss, including confusion and forgetfulness. Symptoms of depression also make it challenging to focus and make good decisions.
Aphasia usually happens suddenly after a stroke or a head injury. But it can also come on gradually from a slow-growing brain tumor or a disease that causes progressive, permanent damage (degenerative). The severity of aphasia depends on a number of things, including the cause and the extent of the brain damage.
Causes of aphasia
stroke – the most common cause of aphasia. severe head injury. a brain tumour. progressive neurological conditions – conditions that cause the brain and nervous system to become damaged over time, such as dementia.
As you get older, chances are you'll sometimes forget a word, where you left your car keys, or the name of a neighbor you bumped into at the market. These small memory lapses happen. They're a normal part of aging -- just like creaky knees, wrinkled skin, or blurry vision.
Common early symptoms of dementia
memory loss. difficulty concentrating. finding it hard to carry out familiar daily tasks, such as getting confused over the correct change when shopping. struggling to follow a conversation or find the right word.
Dementia affects about 5 million adults over 65 years old in the United States. A new test you can take at home may help detect early symptoms of the disease. The test, known as SAGE, can be taken online or downloaded and completed at your doctor's office.
Your doctor may recommend you have brain scans such as MRI or CT scan to see if there's a physical cause for your memory loss. Your doctor might also do cognitive tests to examine your memory issues more closely. These tests may involve: testing your attention span by seeing how well you can complete a thought or task.