Page 6 - The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss and Enhance Memory Power

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PREFACE

AS THE POPULATION AGES, there is growing concern about mild memory loss and how to prevent it.
Many people fear losing their memory, some are uncertain about the boundaries between normal
aging and pathologic memory loss, and others have questions about which preventive and treatment
measures are safe and really work. These questions have gained added momentum because a
plethora of exciting new preventive strategies and treatments have been developed for memory loss:
from alternative medications like ginkgo biloba to dietary supplements like vitamin E to
cholinesterase inhibitors like donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon), and galantamine (Reminyl)
that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat Alzheimer's disease.

As a practicing physician and researcher, I have been immersed in academic pursuits for the last
sixteen years, publishing two books and over 130 papers, supported by a number of clinical research
grants, mainly from the National Institutes of Health. But over time, as I began to wonder about how
much of this new knowledge actually percolates down to the general public, the outline for this book
began to take shape in my mind. After researching a large number of books that are available to the
general public, I discovered that there wasn't a single source that provided comprehensive
information about memory loss and how to prevent and treat it, utilizing a memory program that
could be tailor-made for each individual. Translating the available medical and scientific evidence
into information that the average person can use in his or her daily life has been my goal in writing
this book.

This book describes the current state of knowledge about memory loss due to the aging process,
provides specific guidelines to prevent memory loss, and reviews established and breakthrough
treatments for memory loss. I rely on the scientific evidence, buttressed by my clinical experience, in
developing each element of the