Memory 259appears to be heavily genetically influenced and involves several different genetic varia-
tions, this seems to be the case for fewer than 5 percent of the total cases of the disease (Alz-
heimer’s Association, 2010; Bertram & Tanzi, 2005; Haass et al., 1995). The sad truth is that
there is not one cause but many, and even those who do NOT have Alzheimer’s disease are
not safe from other forms of dementia, such as dementia caused by strokes, dehydration,
medications, and so on (Karantzoulis, & Galvin, 2011).
Treatments can slow but not halt or reverse the course of the disease. Five drugs
are currently approved for treatment, but as yet only slow down the symptoms for an
average of 6 to 12 months. What is known is that the risk factors for Alzheimer ’s (and
many other forms of dementia) are something that can be managed: high cholesterol,
high blood pressure, smoking, obesity, Type II diabetes, and lack of exercise all contrib-
ute (Alzheimer ’s Association, 2010; Baumgart et al., 2015). Keeping the brain mentally
active is also a way to help prolong good cognitive health. One study’s findings indi-
cate that continued everyday learning stimulates brain-derived neurotrophic factors
(BDNF), a key protein involved in the formation of memories (L. Y. Chen et al., 2010).
A more recent study suggests that a drug intended for use in treating diabetes, AC253,
may be able to restore memory to Alzheimer ’s-affected brain cells (Kimura et al., 2012),
while another new drug, ORM-12741, also shows promise (Rouru et al., 2013).
We a l s o k n o w t h a t A l z h e i m e r ’ s i s not caused by eating food from aluminum pots
and pans, using the artificial sweetener aspartame, having silver dental fillings, or get-
ting a flu shot—all myths you may have seen on the Internet or social media. None of
these are true (Alz.org®: Alzheimer’s Association, 2015).
People with dementia or traumatic brain injuries may end up with both types of
amnesia. In a study of a recent case of anterograde amnesia, a musician suffering brain
damage from a bad case of encephalitis (brain inflammation) no longer remembers his
past life, friends, or relatives (retrograde amnesia) and can no longer learn new infor-
mation (anterograde amnesia). Yet he can still play his cello, read music, and can not
only play pieces from before his brain injury but can also learn new pieces (Finke et al.,
2012). These are nondeclarative skills, and this type of memory is typically unaffected
by amnesia, suggesting that a different area of the brain is involved.
I’ve tried to remember things from when I was a baby, but I don’t
seem to be able to recall much. Is this some kind of amnesia, too?INFANTILE AMNESIA What is the earliest memory you have? Chances are you can-
not remember much that happened to you before age 3. When a person does claim
to “remember” some event from infancy, a little investigation usually reveals that the
“memory” is really based on what family members have told the person about that event
and is not a genuine memory at all. This type of “manufactured” memory often has the
quality of watching yourself in the memory as if it were a movie and you were an actor.
In a genuine memory, you would remember the event through your own eyes—as if you
were the camera.
Why can’t people remember events from the first 2 or 3 years of life? One explana-
tion of infantile amnesia involves the type of memory that exists in the first few years
of life, when a child is still considered an infant. Early memories tend to be implicit, and,
as stated earlier in this chapter, implicit memories are difficult to bring to consciousness.
Explicit memory, which is the more verbal and conscious form of memory, does not
really develop until after about age 2, when the hippocampus is more fully developed
and language skills blossom (Carver & Bauer, 2001).
Katherine Nelson (1993) also gives credit to the social relationships that small
children have with others. As children are able to talk about shared memories with
adults, they begin to develop their autobiographical memory, or the memory for events
and facts related to one’s personal life story.
infantile amnesia
the inability to retrieve memories from
much before age 3.autobiographical memory
the memory for events and facts
related to one’s personal life story.To track the cell death that occurs in
Alzheimer’s disease, researchers used
MRI technology to scan both patients with
Alzheimer’s disease and normal elderly
subjects. Using supercomputers, the UCLA
team created color-coded maps that revealed
the degenerative sequence of the disease
through novel brain-mapping methods.
The wave of gray matter loss was strongly
related to the progressive decline in cognitive
functioning that is a key feature of the disease.
Other researchers have used PET scans, as
in the image above, to illustrate differences
in brain activity between individuals with and
without Alzheimer’s disease.