Is There A Connection Between Depression and Memory Loss?

Few things are more frustrating than being unable to remember people, events, and facts. It can create a sense of instability and a concern that a serious condition such as Alzheimer’s might be imminent. The truth, however, is that the ability to remember is not nearly as set in stone as we might believe. Many things can have a negative effect on memory, including lack of sleep, medication side effects, and numerous physical conditions including depression. If a person is suffering from both memory loss and depression, the logical question is whether the two are related.

Knowing that depression can impact our ability to remember makes our memory seem quite fragile. It is much more accurate to think of the capacity to remember as elastic.  When the brain is functioning normally, we are able to perceive and collect information, storing it in memory as needed. When that function is disrupted, the mental processes required to understand and store information break down.

Current research has found a connection between depression and memory loss because both depression and memory loss are related to irregular brain function. Chemical imbalance and abnormal brainwave activity disrupt emotional balance, as well as the ability to perceive one’s surroundings and store impressions in memory. 

  A common symptom of depression is the inability to concentrate, making it difficult to remember specific events after the fact. With proper treatment for depression symptoms, it is quite possible memory function will also be restored for some patients.

There are other factors at play which link depression and memory loss. As noted in this article recently released by the University of Rochester School of Medicine, there may be a link between loss of cognitive ability, symptoms of depression and memory loss, and reduced levels of IGF-1, a hormone involved in growth and development. Although this study is primarily looking at the impact on older adults, their findings may have far-reaching implications in the field of memory loss.

It is logical to assume that there is a definite link between depression and the ability to remember. Because memories accumulate over time and contribute to a person’s ability to think, interact, and experience emotions, long-term untreated depression can then be considered a serious threat to quality of life.

When the symptoms of depression or memory loss are first recognized it is important to seek the assistance of a healthcare professional. In doing so, the emotional, intellectual, and social functioning of the patient can best be preserved.

NEUROFEEDBACK FOR DEPRESSION AND MEMORY LOSS

How Likely Am I to Develop a Memory Loss Disease?

Diseases that cause memory loss tend to be neurodegenerative diseases, which are characterized by progressive deterioration within the brain. Three common neurodegenerative memory loss diseases are Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease. Of these, Alzheimer’s is by far the most common. 

Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a tragically common memory loss disease; one in three people will develop Alzheimer’s before they die. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease associated with plaques and tangles that develop in the brain. It is marked by cognitive and memory impairments that progress in severity over time. Alzheimer’s generally arises later in life, and its early stages are easily confused with normal memory impairment due to aging.

Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease include:

·         A family history of the disease

·         Mild cognitive impairment

·         Certain genetic factors

·         Existing cardiovascular disease

·         Traumatic brain injury

·         Lack of regular mental stimulation and low level of education

As you grow older, you become increasingly more likely to develop the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. One in nine people age 65 and older have Alzheimer’s disease; among people 85 and older, one in three has Alzheimer’s. Statistically, women are more likely to have Alzheimer’s than men; however, this may have to do with the fact that women generally tend to live longer. 

Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s Disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the death of dopamine-generating cells in a region of the brain called the substantia nigra. The earliest and most obvious symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are motor symptoms such as shaking and rigidity, but Parkinson’s is also among the most well-known memory loss diseases and is likely to affect a person’s ability to recall learned information.

The cause or causes of Parkinson’s disease are not yet completely known, although evidence suggests it has a heritable genetic component.

As many as one million Americans have Parkinson’s disease. Worldwide, there are between seven and ten million people with this disease.

Risk factors for Parkinson’s disease include:

·         Advanced age

·         Family history of Parkinson’s

·         In women, declining estrogen levels

·         Exposure to environmental toxins, such as in the course of agricultural work

·         Genetic factors

·         Low levels of Vitamin B Folate

·         Head trauma 

Huntington ’s Disease

Huntington’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that affects muscle coordination and leads to cognitive decline. It can impair a range of memory functions, including long-term memory, short-term memory, episodic memory, and procedural memory. Huntington’s disease is more common in people of Western European descent than those of African or Asian descent and can affect both women and men. Huntington’s disease affects an estimated three to seven out of every 100,000 people of European descent.

Unlike Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, Huntington’s disease is caused by a known genetic factor, the dominant form of a gene called huntingtin. Because this gene is autosomal dominant, only one parent has to have the dominant allele of the gene for a child to inherit the disease.

Three prevalent memory loss diseases are Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease. Huntington’s disease is caused by a dominant allele in a known gene, whereas the causes of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s are less understood. Alzheimer’s is by far the most prevalent of these diseases, and is the most likely to affect a given individual. Depending on how long you live, the chances are that you will eventually develop some degree of Alzheimer’s. 

NEUROFEEDBACK FOR MEMORY LOSS

Degenerative Neurological Diseases as Memory Loss Causes: Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s

There are numerous diseases, disorders, and injuries that are known to be memory loss causes. Memory loss can be related to aging, can be an effect of disease processes, or can result from injuries to certain areas of the brain.

Three diseases that involve the deterioration of the brain and can cause memory loss include:

·         Alzheimer’s disease

·         Parkinson’s disease

·         Huntington’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease and Memory Loss

Alzheimer’s disease is unfortunately common among older people. It is a progressive, degenerative disease best known for causing dementia. It also causes pronounced short-term and long-term memory loss. As the disease progresses, afflicted persons often lose more and more of their memory.

One of the most common early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is short-term memory loss. People with incipient Alzheimer’s may begin to show difficulty learning new facts and remembering recently learned information. There is also sometimes impairment of semantic memory, which is subtler; a person with early Alzheimer’s may lose memories involving meanings and relationships between concepts.

In the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s, short-term memory is most strongly affected. Episodic memory, the memory of events in the person’s life, is less strongly affected, as is procedural memory, their memory of how to perform learned tasks.

As Alzheimer’s progresses to the moderate level of the disease, deficits in long-term memory may begin to manifest. The person may even fail to recognize close family members. Individuals over a certain age who are beginning to experience problems with short-term memory may want to be evaluated for Alzheimer’s disease.

Parkinson’s disease and Memory Loss

Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system; it involves the death of cells that generate dopamine, an important neurotransmitter, in a region of the midbrain called the substantia nigra. The most obvious and well-known symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are its motor symptoms, including shaking, rigidity, slowness of movement, and difficulty walking; however, it is also among the diseases that cause memory loss.

Cognitive disturbances, such as difficulties with memory and executive function, can occur in the initial stages of Parkinson’s disease, and become more severe as the disease progresses. In terms of memory loss, Parkinson’s is most likely to impair the ability to recall learned information. There may also be difficulties with working memory; for example, people with Parkinson’s disease may find themselves having increased difficulty holding multiple items in their short-term memory simultaneously.

Huntington’s disease and Memory Loss

Huntington’s disease is a degenerative neurological disorder with a genetic basis. It is more likely to occur in women, and often manifests itself in the 30s or 40s. During the progression of Huntington’s disease, deficits in memory and cognition begin to appear. Memory loss in Huntington’s disease can vary in nature and intensity and can include:

·         Short-term memory loss

·         Difficulties with long-term memory, including loss of episodic memory

·         Loss of procedural memory

·         Deficits in working memory

Causes of memory loss include a number of progressive, degenerative disease processes, which affect regions of the brain responsible for different types of memory. These diseases include Alzheimer’s disease, which is a tragically common cause of progressive memory deterioration in older adults, and Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease, which are two other neurodegenerative diseases that can cause memory loss.

Is EEG Biofeedback the Same as Neurofeedback?

Defining EEG Biofeedback 

As new and innovative medical treatments have gained notoriety over the last few years, many people have been confused about the distinction between EEG biofeedback and neurofeedback. Today we will put that misunderstanding to rest and then explain the treatment and how it works in depth. First off, there is no difference: EEG biofeedback and neurofeedback are different terms for an identical therapy. This is a pain-free and noninvasive procedure that delivers long-term results without the risk of any side effects – and no, it’s not too good to be true.

The concept behind EEG biofeedback is this: the human body is an amazing machine of functionality, and it wants to perform flawlessly. Having said this, things happen that can throw off our various body systems, and the brain is no exception. Where a normal brainwave pattern accomplishes its goals efficiently and without issue, when our brainwave patterns get off kilter, problems such as neurological disorders ensue. EEG biofeedback works to normalize these patterns, and to teach your body how to keep them normal for good. 

What Can Be Treated? 

EEG biofeedback has already been proven effective against an amazingly wide array of neurological disorders, including:

·         Anxiety

·         Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

·         Autism

·         Chronic Pain

·         Fibromyalgia

·         Insomnia

·         Memory Loss

·         Migraines/Tension Headaches

·         Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

·         Seizures

Embrace the Future of Medicine 

EEG biofeedback got its name because it relies on electrical signals delivered from your brain called EEG’s. Prior to beginning therapy, an assessment is performed and subsequently interpreted by doctors using high-tech reading devices. This information, in turn, is used to determine which brainwave patterns need to be corrected. Patients are guided through a series of brain exercises, usually in the form of a video or audio recording (the “feedback” part of EEG biofeedback), that teach the brain to self-regulate when brainwave patterns begin to deviate from the norm. After a certain amount of repetition, the brain will eventually learn how to perform these normalizing functions automatically, which should then help address the problem not only in the right now, but for the long-term. In this way, EEG biofeedback accomplishes what medication or therapy sets out to do without continually eating up your time, money, and patience.

To take the first step in changing your life forever with BrainCore’s incredible EEG biofeedback, click here today and get in touch with our team.