WASHINGTON, D.C.: Noticing that you’ve forgotten something, sometimes called ‘a senior moment’ can be frustrating, but new research suggests the fact that you’re aware of your forgetfulness may be a good thing.
A US study has found that older adults who will go on to develop dementia may begin to lose their awareness of memory problems up to 3 years before being diagnosed with dementia.
Rush University Medical Center in Chicago analysed data from 3 continuing studies involving more than 2,000 participants with an average age of 76 at the start of the research.
At the beginning of the trial, the volunteers had no signs of memory or brain problems called cognitive impairment.
Memory and thinking ability tests were given every year, and the volunteers were also asked how often they had trouble remembering things. They were also asked to rate their current memory compared with how it was 10 years earlier.
During the study, 239 people were diagnosed with dementia. The researchers found that awareness of memory ability was stable until it dropped sharply on average 2.6 years before the dementia started.