Your Memory: How It Works And How To Improve It By Means Of Healthier Social Contact

This is an article about your memory: how it works and how to improve it.  Investigation more and more often informs us that more social engagement delays memory loss as we get older. This is not unexpected because relating to other people exercises the memory at many levels. As we know more about how memory works we appreciate that earlier experiences are steadily being called up and assembled with current perceptions and thoughts. When the resulting associations are themselves stored for future use, the memory is enhanced.That is why solid social interplay with friends, family and community members can enrich our brain health as we grow older. It also reinforces the insight that social detachment is a key risk factor for mental and emotional deterioration for seniors. Recently the Harvard School of Public Health investigated measurements from the Health And Retirement Study which observed adults who were 50 years old or more. The subjects of the study worked on memory tests every two years. The researchers also measured the social interaction of study participants based on marital status, volunteer activities and contact with parents, children and neighbors. The findings showed that persons in their 50s and 60s who had a good amount of social activity also had the slowest rate of memory loss. In fact, when they were compared to folks who were the least socially active, those who had the highest socialization scores had less than half the rate of memory loss.When our aging acquaintances say, "I really want to know how to improve my memory," it is easy for us to tell them to get out of the house as often as possible. Significantly, the high importance of social interaction occurs at a season of life when they are most defenseless to isolation. Deteriorating health, shrinking traditional support systems, the growing independence of younger children and relatives and cynical expectations about aging blend to bring about loneliness and depression, which lead to accelerating health decline, and so forth. This is not necessary.Those who are dealing with these symptoms of aging are the least capable of helping themselves to escape from of the cycles that are robbing them of the potential for a splendid quality of existence. It is critically important that those who care for and about them intercede, if necessary, to suspend the cycle of aging, isolation, depression and physical decline. This is not always easy in a society that values autonomy and non-interference. However, if we are interested in our aging population we must accept that they are not as independent as they were, or as they think they are, or as they would like to be. We must find more creative ways to help them sustain their socialization opportunities and, thus, their memories. There are many ways to address the problems of aging and memory. Technology is one such means, and public resources can provide many others. Nonetheless, it is likely to be up to those of us who owe them so much to pay it back by gently pushing them back into society when we see them wandering away.For more information on this and other topics of interest to senior citizens, see our website Going Strong Seniors! For recreational and entertainment opportunities see Senior Fun! Want to know more about aging, memory loss and brain health? Click here!