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Maximizing memory, brain function possible, physician says

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SAN FRANCISCO — People can help improve their memory function and may be able “to stave off memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease,” Gary W. Small, MD, said here. Dr. Small delivered the Manus C. Kraff Lecture on Science and Medicine at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery meeting. Dr. Small is a renowned physician, neuroscientist and psychiatrist who heads an internationally recognized aging and memory research team, ASCRS said.

“What someone can and can’t do to delay memory loss has a lot to do with genetic makeup,” Dr. Small said. In his work at the UCLA Memory Clinic, he found genetics accounted for about 33% of a person’s risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease. He added that women who use Premarin (conjugated estrogen, Wyeth) after menopause have an increased likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s.

Mild memory impairment — such as forgetting why you went to the refrigerator — tends to start in a person’s 50s, Dr. Small said. Mild cognitive impairment — such as forgetting keys or events — tends to start in someone’s 60s or 70s, and Alzheimer’s has a typical onset when someone is in their 80s, he said.

In the near future, “maybe 10 years from now,” science will have advanced to the point where brain health tests will be as common as cholesterol or blood pressure tests are today, Dr. Small believes. Current drugs on the market slow the progression of Alzheimer’s, but do not prevent the disease. Supplements such as Ginkgo biloba or curcumin (turmeric root) are under investigation, but they have yet to be proven to improve brain health, he said.

Naproxen, an anti-inflammatory drug, has been shown in rat studies to bind to FDDNP, a protein associated with Alzheimer’s.

“We think we can predict what a patient’s brain will look like 2 years down the road,” he said, based on the amount of FDDNP activity in a person’s brain at baseline.

“So, what can we do right now to improve brain health?” he said.

Four basic activities may help prolong the onset of cognitive impairment: stress reduction, physical activity, healthy diet and mental activity.

“People who are physically active have more memory cells and an increase in hippocampal cells compared with sedentary people,” he said. Moderate caloric intake, coupled with antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids and low glycemic index carbohydrates may be beneficial as well.

He also advises people incorporate the “Look, Snap, Connect” as often as possible.

“Look at something to focus your attention. Snap — take a mental snapshot of the item of focus. Connect the two together,” he said. Make up a story to help remember and to improve brain activity.

He said if all people did “just one thing on that list, within 5 years there would be 1 million fewer cases of dementia.”

The Manus C. Kraff Lecture on Science and Medicine was established as a forum for expanding and enriching appreciation of fields of science and medicine outside of ophthalmology.