Alzheimer's disease, a form of dementia in which people lose much of their memory, forgetting even people who are close to them, is a frightening prospect. With awareness of this disease increasing, it's easy for people to fear developing it and look for symptoms in themselves and their loved ones. Every little memory lapse can make people worry that they're on the road to Alzheimer's dementia. Doctors at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas say a bit of forgetfulness isn't anything to worry about.
Most people forget names and dates from time to time, or forget where they left their car keys.
This tendency also gets worse as people age. All this is perfectly normal, and it doesn't mean that a person is developing Alzheimer's disease. That's when you should talk to your doctor about the memory problems. Even then, the problem may not be Alzheimer's disease. There are a number of reasons for memory lapses or dementia.