Most people will experience memory lapses as a normal part of aging, while up to 10 percent may develop the more serious Alzheimer's disease, which leads to progressive and permanent memory loss. Certain lifestyle choices can help slow or prevent the onset of age-related memory problems, with new research showing that what you eat may play one of the biggest roles of all.
Identification
Memory loss falls into four basic categories: mild cognitive impairment, a subtle but measurable memory disorder; dementia, a condition of declining mental abilities, especially memory; vascular dementia, loss of brain function due to a series of small strokes; and Alzheimer's disease, first described in 1907 by Alois Alzheimer.
Significance
Half to two-thirds of people ages 50 and older notice greater difficulty remembering names, appointments, and other details, according to Harvard University Medical School. Alzheimer's disease cases increase rapidly after age 60, adds the Roena B. Kulynych Center for Memory and Cognition Research at Wake Forest University. The worldwide direct costs for dementia in 2003 were estimated at $156 billion, as reported by the Division of Geriatric Epidemiology at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
Nutritional Benefits
Although no cure for Alzheimer's disease and dementia exist as of 2010, certain foods can help ease memory loss. Various studies have shown that quercetin, a substance found in apples, blueberries, blackberries, Concord grape juice, salmon, cinnamon, turmeric, coffee and dark chocolate contributes significantly to preventing the oxidative stress-induced neurotoxicity that causes Alzheimer disease and dementia.
Supplement Benefits
The Memory and Aging Center at the University of California at San Francisco studied several supplements used to help treat memory disorders and dementias based on reports from clinical trials. Although they show limited effectiveness, some preliminary evidence suggests dietary supplements such as ginkgo biloba, ginseng and huperzine A, an alkaloid isolated from Chinese club moss, may be helpful in preventing memory decline.
Expert Insight
Older adults with low levels of vitamin D are almost four times more likely to have memory problems, according to a study led by David Llewellyn, a neuropsychologist at the University of Exeter in England. In addition, a nationwide health and nutrition survey by the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University found that the B vitamin folate may help reduce memory loss. Several studies have investigated the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on brain health, such as one published in 1999 in the journal "Lipids" in which older rats fed an omega-3 diet improved their memory dramatically. Researchers at the University of Illinois also discovered that a plant compound called luteolin, found in abundance in celery and green peppers, prevented brain inflammation that can lead to Alzheimer's.
