Memory After Sixty

Plain notes on forgetting, remembering and getting older, in large print

Memory after sixty: what is normal, what is not, and what actually helps

I ran lathes for thirty-eight years. In a machine shop you learn to trust measurements and distrust anybody who says a part is "close enough." When I turned seventy and started walking into the garage and forgetting why, I wanted the same thing from the people writing about memory: measurements, not sales talk.

There is a lot of sales talk out there. Every week there is a new tablet or tea or brain game that is supposed to "sharpen" you. Some of it has a little science behind it. Most of it has a lot of marketing in front of it. These notes are my attempt to sort one from the other, in plain words and big print, for people my age.

I am not a doctor. Where something needs a doctor, I say so.

The first thing I learned

Some forgetting is just part of getting older. Losing a name for a minute and getting it back later. Misplacing the reading glasses. Walking into a room and blanking on why. The National Institute on Aging puts these in the normal column, and it was a relief to read that.

What is not normal is forgetting that keeps getting worse, or that starts getting in the way of everyday life. Getting lost on a drive you have made a hundred times. Asking the same question over and over in the same afternoon. Trouble with bills you used to handle without thinking. Those are reasons to see a doctor, and soon. The first article below goes through the difference in more detail.

The second thing I learned

There is more you can do than I thought. A big report from a group of dementia experts in 2024 counted fourteen risk factors that people can do something about, including high blood pressure, hearing loss, inactivity, diabetes and smoking, and estimated that nearly half of dementia cases might be delayed or prevented by working on them (Livingston, 2024). That does not mean anybody can guarantee it for you. It does mean the boring stuff matters: walking, blood pressure pills, the hearing aids in the drawer.

Where supplements fit

At the bottom of the list, in my opinion, after the habits. But I understand why people try them. My sister-in-law takes one. My neighbor takes another. So I have read up on the ingredients that show up most in memory supplements, and on one product in particular, Phytomem One, because its ads were everywhere. If you are curious about it, there is a careful review of one popular memory supplement that lays out the ingredients, the price and the fine print better than I could.

The one rule I would give anybody my age: before you buy any of them, show the label to your pharmacist. A lot of these products contain ingredients that lower blood sugar or thin the blood, and a lot of us are already on pills that do the same thing.

What is on this site

Three articles so far, each one a question I had to look up myself:

I will add more as I go. If something here is wrong, I want to know about it. In the shop we called that a correction, and nobody was too proud to take one.

What to Ask Your Doctor Before Trying a Memory SupplementNine questions to bring to your doctor or pharmacist before you start a memory supplement, plus what to bring to the appointment and how to read the label.Habits That Help Memory After 60: What the Studies Actually ShowWalking, hearing aids, blood pressure, sleep and blood sugar: which memory habits after sixty have real trials behind them, with the numbers in plain words.Normal Forgetting or a Warning Sign? A Plain Guide for Over-60sWhich memory slips are normal after sixty and which ones mean see a doctor. Plain examples, the official warning signs, and the treatable causes worth checking.

Walt Kessler ran lathes in an Erie, Pennsylvania machine shop for thirty-eight years. At 72 he writes for people his age who want straight answers about memory without the sales pitch. He is not a medical professional.