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Senior Moments - Not as Innocent as You Think
In this article:
- Manage lapses in your memory
- Decrease your chances of degenerative memory disease such as Alzheimer's
- Early treatment of memory problems equals early prevention
Do you think your memory and brain function is "OK?" Maybe you should reconsider that answer.
What about those little lapses in memory you make a joke about and call them "senior moments?" What would you think if they really were not a joke?
Well, they really are not a joke, but are big red flags that say, "Something may be wrong here." Those are early warning signs, a "shot across your bow" as they say, to tell you it is time to look into possible causes. It is frightening to note that, at the age of 85 years old, one-half of that population has Alzheimer's disease. That really is a sobering thought, since we all plan to live to be that age, and want the best quality of life up to 85 y/o and beyond. I don't know about you, but I want better odds than 50-50 when it comes to having a sharp mind and a good time for the rest of my life. In order to greatly reduce the odds of being a victim of Alzheimer's dementia at that age, you have to realize that the disease does not begin suddenly at age 85 years old. The seeds of damage and degeneration begin sometimes as early as the age of 45, and progress very slowly from there.
One of the early signs is a problem with short-term memory recall or slowing of cognitive processing - - a "senior moment." If you have a first-degree relative with Alzheimer's disease, your chances of having the disease double. If two first-degree relatives have it, your chances quadruple. If those were my chances of getting hit by a bus when I got up every morning, I'm not sure I could ever be persuaded to get out of bed.
So what do you do? You want optimal quality of life and a good chance to head off and reduce the chances of developing degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and others. Think of the person who has a heart attack at 60 or 65 years old. That heart attack didn't just suddenly happen, The conditions that finally caused it to occur began years before and simply worsened until the final devastating event occurred - the heart attack. Had proactive measures been put in place years earlier, that event could have been postponed for many years or perhaps prevented entirely. We at the NeuroMedical Institute for Age Management believe that by being proactive, and utilizing the best studies and treatments that modern and alternative medicine have to offer, we can delay or prevent the onset of many of the degenerative diseases which, in the past, were called "old age," or "aging," but which we now know are actually slow disease processes. We can stop them or greatly slow their progression in many cases, but we cannot get back what you have lost. That is particularly true when it comes to Alzheimer's disease.
So the mantra for health is "Early, Early, Early," treatment for prevention. Prevent it or stop it early, and your doctor won't have to try to put you back together after it's too late.
How to be proactive? - - Establish hormonal balance with replacement therapy, exercise and conditioning, and a healthy eating program.
I am a Neurologist with thirty years of practice experience, and have watched too many patients with good physical health be devastated by Alzheimer's disease; so I have a very special interest in the preservation of optimal brain function at all ages and stages of life.
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Age Management Topics
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About the Institute
