Page 57 - The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss and Enhance Memory Power

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and gender categories, with separate guidelines for those who wish to prevent memory loss
versus those who already have mild memory loss and need to treat it and prevent further
decline.

In this chapter, I introduce the basic outline of the Memory Program. In subsequent chapters, I go
through the various elements that constitute the Memory Program, giving you a detailed description
and explanation of the science and clinical basis behind the practical recommendations, and how you
should go about making the decision to implement each component in your own life. I then bring all
this information together in a chapter devoted to describing the Memory Program in detail. I urge
you to read this book sequentially and not skip to the later chapter that describes the program itself,
because much of what you need there won't be clear if you haven't read the earlier chapters.

If You're Not Sure

If your memory is sound and you have excellent general health habits, you might justifiably ask why
you need to even bother about age-related memory loss. My answer is quite simple: if you are
willing to suffer a gradual dwindling in your memory starting in your forties and fifties, and
continuing into your sixties and seventies, then you should not waste any of your time or energy
worrying about it. But you probably belong to the majority of people who look forward to their
golden years with hope and a positive attitude. You want to function at your peak physical and
mental capacity for the longest possible period of time, so that your later years will truly be golden.
If you belong to this group, now is the right time to begin taking steps to prevent age-related memory
loss.

Don't Wait Until It Is Too Late

Prevention is the best strategy against the aging process, but our society often prefers to ignore
problems until they strike us in the face. In some cases, we can get away with it, as the United States
government managed to do with the federal budget deficit in the 1990s, waiting for the other shoe to
drop before swinging into a corrective action mode. But maintaining good health is a different matter
altogether.