Do you experience frequent loss of memory? Or, are you finding difficulties in concentrating? It is very natural to be forgetful when you get old. As your age increases you tend to become more absent-minded or your memory seems to be affected. Being forgetful is a very common phenomenon in both men and women. There is nothing to worry about when you occasionally forget a name or a routine task. But if this forgetfulness continues and affects your daily life, then it may be an indication of an underlying problem. Women experience memory loss in various stages of their life. Difficulty experienced in concentrating or foggy thinking in women is always associated with hormonal imbalances due to reduced estrogen levels and menopause. Other common factors include Alzheimer’s disease, alcoholism, head injuries or neurodegenerative illnesses. But memory loss in women may also be a result of various other problems. The different causes of memory loss in women are summarized below.
1. Pregnancy: Pregnant women often tend to forget things. This may be due to fluctuations in their hormonal levels, disorganized sleeping, or because of being more preoccupied with the baby inside her. According to a report that got published in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, pregnant women and new mothers experience more difficulties in multitasking or in retaining new information in their minds. This study which was continued for only one year after childbirth revealed that this initial loss of memory gradually faded as time passed.
2. Statins: Memory lapses often affect women who take statins. Statins are a kind of medicine taken for reducing cholesterol levels. This short term memory loss which is a side effect of statin is only confined to women. Other side effects include muscle and joint pain in minor cases and muscle and kidney damage in more severe ones. It has been seen that after using Lipitor, a statin, the cognitive skills of women changed very soon and they experience loss of memory. Words and numbers seem to escape from their minds. But on discontinuation of this medications things change to normal again.
3. No Carbohydrate Diet: A study conducted at the Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts, revealed that women who do not consume adequate amounts of carbohydrate tend to be more forgetful than the ones who eat enough carbohydrate rich food items. Glucose which is the main constituent in carbohydrate containing foods help in boosting your memory and when you follow the Atkins diet (a diet with restricted amounts of carbohydrate), your glucose levels decrease which results in loss of memory. So, if you want to possess a sound memory, then always try to consume carbohydrate rich food like bread, sugars, potatoes and fruits and vegetables that supply glucose to your body.
4. Ovarian Removal: Memory loss can also be caused by removal of one or both ovaries in premenopausal women between 30 to 50 years. According to a report published in the ‘Journal’ s August, 2008 issue, women undergoing an ovary removal surgery showed an increased risk of dementia after her menopause. The study also revealed that signs of severe memory loss didn’t appear in women who were offered treatment with estrogen after their surgeries in comparison to the ones who were not given any sort of hormonal treatment.
5. Menopause: Postmenopausal women often suffer from memory loss. Foggy memory, very less span of memory retention and problems faced during the process of learning new tasks is very much common in women who go though menopause. This kind of memory loss is different from the one experienced in dementia and can be treated to a certain extent by estrogen treatments. Some other alternative treatments like taking ginko supplements, consuming more caffeine rich food items and indulging in memory-improving exercises like crossword puzzles can decrease the effect of severe memory loss.
6. Stress: Stress experienced by women in their early stages of life can lead to loss of memory in the middle stages. Stress results in the production of a particular hormone called cortisole which increases the level of memory loss. Studies have shown that by employing some stress reduction techniques like yoga, swimming, deep breathing, walking etc., regularly, women can improve their focusing capacity and thereby sharpen their memory.
7. Depression: Depression is a kind of mental illness which is very common among women. It results in the inability to concentrate properly which causes loss of memory. An individual can learn new things and remember them only when she becomes more attentive, but depression leads to loss of attention. Hence, if not treated properly and quickly, it can cause severe memory loss.
