What is Cognitive Decline?
Cognitive decline refers to a gradual worsening of mental functions like memory, reasoning, attention, language, etc. It is a normal part of aging. However, some people experience it earlier or more severely than others.
The most common signs of cognitive decline are:
- Forgetting recent events or conversations
- Struggling to retain new information
- Taking longer to do familiar tasks
- Getting confused about time or place
- Trouble with complex tasks like managing finances or directions
Cognitive decline is concerning when it starts interfering with daily life. Mild decline can be part of normal aging, but severe or rapid decline may indicate an underlying condition like Alzheimer's disease.
What Causes Cognitive Decline?
There are several factors that can accelerate cognitive decline:
- Aging - The most common cause. Our brain and its connections weaken as we get older.
- Vascular disease - Reduced blood flow damages brain cells.
- Traumatic brain injury - Can kickstart decline earlier in life.
- Neurodegenerative diseases - Alzheimer's damages and kills brain cells.
- Vitamin deficiencies - Vitamins like B12 are crucial for brain health.
- Sleep disorders - Disrupts crucial brain recovery processes.
- Stress - Prolonged stress hurts the hippocampus area.
- Lack of stimulation - The brain needs exercise to stay sharp.
How to Slow Cognitive Decline
Fortunately, cognitive decline can be reduced through lifestyle changes:
- Eat a healthy diet high in fruits, vegetables, and omega-3s.
- Exercise regularly to improve blood flow and stimulate the brain.
- Get good quality sleep to allow the brain time to repair.
- Manage health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and depression.
- Stay socially and mentally active to strengthen neural pathways.
- Try supplements like B vitamins, Curcumin and Ashwagandha (with a doctor's approval).
Our medical clinic, Hormone Health Center, also offers hormone therapy to restore optimal hormonal balance. Deficient hormones like oestrogen, testosterone, melatonin and DHEA are strongly tied to cognitive function. We craft custom bioidentical hormone treatments to meet each patient's unique needs and improve energy, mood, memory and overall vitality!
I hope this gives a helpful overview of what cognitive decline is, what causes it, and most importantly - how to keep your brain healthy into older age! Let me know if you have any other questions.