Brain Fitness Tip of the Week: Remembering Whether You Remembered

Something that challenges older persons about their memory is being able to remember whether they have already done something. “Did I take my medicine this morning?” is the kind of question people may ask themselves. This is very common when I talk to older persons about their memories, and is probably related to the most common complaint I hear: “I went in to the next room to get something and forgot why I went!”

Psychologists are increasingly interested in prospective memory, the ability to remember to remember something. Remembering to take your medicine is an example of this kind of problem. Closely related is the problem of monitoring this kind of regular action, or remembering whether you remembered to do something. You may find yourself asking, “Did I take my medicine today?”

A team of researchers published a study of this problem and found a way older people to remember better. Mark McDaniel at Washington University and his colleagues carried out two experiments that examined this issue. They showed that older persons made more mistakes involving remembering whether they had pressed a key on a computer than did younger people. This was especially true when both groups were doing a complex set of tasks. This had been reported before, but confirms what many older persons might report.

They also showed a way to reduce the memory errors. McDaniel and his colleagues showed that asking the older persons to put their hand on their head while they pressed the computer’s key. When the older persons did this, they performed just as well as the younger participants.

McDaniel and colleagues suggest that putting their hands on their heads helped the older persons pay attention to the fact they were pressing the key. This finding highlights the importance of paying attention for memory. If something doesn’t get in to your mind, it can’t be remembered. One of the keys for older persons to remember better is to do something that helps them focus their attention. Putting your hand on your head may help you to focus your attention while doing something you might otherwise forget.

Here’s the reference for the study:

Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, Volume 16, Issue 5 September 2009 , pages 563 – 588

Brain Fitness Tip of the Week: Frailty

Clinicians and researchers working with older persons often are concerned that their patients will develop a syndrome called frailty. Frailty is usually defined by the occurrence of muscle weakness, slow walking speed, exhaustion, weight loss, and low levels of physical activity.

Frailty may make you think about someone who is quite old and infirm, but at least some people think of frailty as a physical equivalent to developing cognitive problems. Pre-frailty (having just a few of the characteristics of frailty) may be like mild cognitive impairment, a milder form of memory or other cognitive problems that may lead to dementia.

From this point of view, preventing frailty may be a route to preventing decline. Although frailty is defined by things like slow walking and muscle weakness, research shows that frailty is associated with memory problems and depression.

It might seem odd that muscle strength and walking speed go along with memory and depression. But besides the research that show they are related, there’s a good reason why they are linked. Frailty has been linked to higher levels of markers of inflammation such as the pro-inflammatory substances called cytokines. There are substances in your body that are increased when you are sick, but they also increase as you get older.

Evidence suggests that low grade but chronic inflammation may be a key factor in aging. Researchers are still studying the best ways to reduce the effects of inflammation, but it’s likely that exercise reduces levels of inflammatory substances. It is also possible (but not proven) that antioxidant supplements and some diets may help to reduce inflammation. These same things may help prevent frailty. Exercise may be an important defense against developing frailty as well as helping with cognitive decline.