Medically reviewed by Lisa Shulman, MD
With more than 6 million people in the U.S. having some form of dementia, understanding the difference between occasional memory lapses and the symptoms of a more serious neurological condition can bring you peace of mind or help you know when it’s time to seek help.
The first step in helping a loved one (or yourself) is learning what dementia is, how it affects the brain and the key clues that distinguish typical age-related changes from early signs of dementia.
Understanding Dementia
Dementia is a global term for cognitive impairment that interferes with the ability to perform daily activities, including thinking, remembering and reasoning. Some of the many causes include Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy Body Dementia, strokes, vitamin B12 deficiency, chronic illnesses (including kidney, liver and thyroid issues) or certain medications. Notably, dementia may result from a combination of these factors.
Dementia itself is not a specific disease but can occur as part of various neurological disorders. The most common types include Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, Lewy body dementia and vascular dementia, with each impacting the brain in unique ways.
Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease is associated with an abnormal buildup of amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain. Alzheimer’s disease can develop before age 65, but 74% of people with the condition are age 75 or older.
Symptoms include:
- Difficulty finding the right words
- Memory loss, especially problems with short-term memory, that interferes with daily life
- Mood or personality changes
- Problems with judgment
Frontotemporal Dementia
This type of dementia is caused by abnormal amounts of tau or TDP-43 proteins in the brain. Although rare in the general population, it is the most common form of dementia among people younger than age 60.
Symptoms include
- Changes in personality and behavior
- Communication issues
- Emotional problems
- Work challenges and walking difficulties
Lewy Body Dementia
Lewy body dementia is associated with abnormal deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein in Lewy bodies in the brain. These small protein clusters are believed to interfere with the way nerve cells in your brain communicate. The average age of onset is 75.
Symptoms include changes in:
- Behavior
- Hallucinations and delusions
- Movement and mobility
- Sleep
- Thinking abilities
Vascular Dementia
This type of dementia is caused by loss of blood supply in certain regions of the brain, usually the result of a stroke or an accumulation of age-related injury. It’s more common after age 65. Common symptoms include changes in mood, behavior, movement and mobility, with symptoms like delusions and hallucinations occurring less frequently.
Forgetfulness or Warning Signs of Dementia?
When a family member starts forgetting things more often, like people’s names or items on a grocery list, it’s natural to question if this level of memory loss is typical.
Occasional forgetfulness is usually normal. These days, people are bombarded by information from every direction. It’s a lot for the brain to take in — and hold on to.
Besides an overflow of information, there are many other reasons why people may occasionally have problems with their memory. Common and fixable causes of forgetfulness include:
- Being stressed
- Dealing with anxiety or depression
- Drinking alcohol excessively
- Having an underactive thyroid
- Not getting enough sleep
- Taking certain medications, including some used to treat overactive bladder, psychiatric conditions or allergies
If you notice memory changes in a loved one, consider whether reversible factors like stress or sleep problems may be contributing. If so, making changes to everyday habits or seeing a clinician for evaluation and treatment may help.
Recognizing the Early Signs of Dementia
What if you have family members who are experiencing forgetfulness more frequently, even related to information they’ve just been given, along with other concerning symptoms? That’s worth paying close attention to.
The Alzheimer’s Association describes 10 symptoms common among people with dementia:
- Confusion about time or place
- Difficulties with problem-solving or planning
- Diminished judgment
- Memory loss that disrupts daily life
- Misplacing items
- Mood or personality changes
- New problems with speaking or writing
- Problems completing familiar tasks
- Trouble with visual images and spatial relationships
- Withdrawal from work or social activities
As you can see, dementia has many behavioral and psychological symptoms, and forgetfulness is just one. The key is to look for patterns in your loved one’s behavior. Repeatedly exhibiting any of the symptoms above can be a red flag that something is wrong.
Another way to tell the difference between normal aging and a potential sign of dementia is the severity of the symptoms. For example, we all have trouble finding the right word sometimes, but someone with dementia may suddenly stop speaking mid-sentence and be unable to continue the conversation. Similarly, an older adult may forget an ingredient in a familiar recipe, but someone with dementia may struggle to follow the steps to a recipe they have made many times before without help.
Why It’s Important to Consult a Medical Clinician
If you’re a caregiver with concerns about a loved one’s health, you aren’t in this alone. Your loved one’s medical clinician can perform cognitive testing or lab tests to identify the cause of these symptoms. Your loved one may benefit from lifestyle changes, medication adjustments or treatments to address an underlying problem or improve memory.
If forgetfulness and other symptoms turn out to be related to dementia, know that you’ve taken an important step to help your loved one. An early diagnosis means earlier access to treatment, which may help slow cognitive decline and allow your loved one to remain independent for as long as possible.
Key Takeaways
Faced with a constant stream of information, everyone experiences forgetfulness at times. Knowing when memory loss is normal and when it’s a sign of dementia can be difficult.
To start, watch for patterns in your loved one’s behavior. Forgetting someone’s name can be a normal sign of aging or even a sign of stress, but frequent memory lapses that disrupt daily life can signify a bigger problem.
If you notice signs of dementia, schedule an appointment with a medical clinician who can help determine whether there’s a different underlying cause, such as sleep problems or stress, or if it’s related to an emerging dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease. From there, the provider can guide you through the next steps in care.