Memory Loss And Aging

Have you ever heard the term 'Senior Moment'? It's often used to account for forgetfulness and memory loss that is thought to be somehow linked to growing old. Not only is it a yuk-phrase but it also succeeds in giving ageing a 'bad name'.

We all forget things - where we put the car keys, the date of our anniversary, not remembering the exact date of our kids' birthdays - and you don't have to be 'old' to experience any of these examples. If you must resort to use 'senior moment', try these non-words (you won't find them in the dictionary). One of the those is 'Destinesia' - that feeling you get when going somewhere, then forgetting why you came. The other word is 'Episodesia' (probably destinesia's synonym) - that feeling you get when you go looking for something, then forgetting what you're looking for. Again, neither of these words are specific to growing old.

For the mentally sound, that's approximately 85% of us, research continues to show that not one IQ point is not lost to ageing.

Where ageing is likely to come in, is that 'oldies' generally have more time on their hands than the younger brigade - especially is they don't have to go down the salt mine every day. And, given that the amount of stuff we have to do seems to expand with available time, oldies generally find themselves having heaps to do. But most of us can possibly hope to do all the things asked of us - age has got very little (or nothing) to do with it. Sure, we should prioritise or say, 'No' up front, but those realisations usually involve hindsight.

This does not mean, however, that we should do nothing. All living things - even oldies - require regular and constant attention of some kind.

Cicero's recommendation of a healthy diet, adequate exercise, sensual moderation, an active mental life, and reflection, is just as relevant today as it was more than 2,000 years ago..

While Confucius is often incorrectly attributed with saying some things, one of his gems relevant to this topic is, 'The more man meditates on good thoughts, the better will be his world and the world at large'.