Health research · Memory

Six Everyday Habits: Research and Guidance for Thinking Skills After 60

Research findings and general health guidance are not the same as evidence for a supplement. Here is a plain-language overview of six everyday topics, with the source and its limits.

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Thinking and memory vary from person to person. Research and public-health guidance discuss everyday habits such as activity, sleep and learning. The sources below concern those habits; they did not test Brain Memory Keeper and do not show that a supplement produces the same outcomes.

Lever oneGet the heart rate up

A meta-analysis combined 18 exercise studies in healthy, previously inactive older adults. [1] Improvements differed across the thinking skills measured, with larger effects on tasks involving planning and attention. These results concern exercise interventions and cannot be transferred to a supplement.

Lever twoGuard the hours of sleep

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society published a consensus statement about sleep duration for healthy adults. [2] This is general guidance, not a trial of Brain Memory Keeper. Discuss persistent sleep concerns and your individual needs with a healthcare professional.

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Lever threeKeep reading and writing

A cohort of older adults rated how often they read, wrote letters and did other mentally active pastimes, then took thinking tests every year for a mean of 5.8 years. [3] More frequent mental activity, both late in life and earlier, went along with slower decline. In the 294 participants whose brains were examined after death, the link held even after accounting for the brain changes found.

Lever fourTrain a specific skill

The ACTIVE trial randomly assigned 2,832 adults aged 65 to 94 to ten group sessions of memory training, reasoning training or speed-of-processing training, or to no training. [4] Each kind of training improved the ability it targeted, and the gains were still there two years later. The trial did not detect an effect on everyday functioning at two years.

Lever fiveKnow your blood pressure

The National Institute on Aging includes regular health checks and blood-pressure management in its guidance for older adults. [5] Ask your healthcare professional which checks and care are appropriate for you. A supplement does not replace prescribed care, and this guidance is not evidence for the advertised formula.

Lever sixGet your hearing checked

The ACHIEVE trial gave 977 adults aged 70 to 84 with hearing loss either hearing aids with counseling or health education sessions. [6] Across the whole group, three-year cognitive decline was the same in both arms. In the part of the group with more risk factors, the effect differed, and the authors suggest hearing care might matter most for people at higher risk.

First things firstWhen to see a doctor

Talk to a doctor if memory changes start to get in the way of daily life, for example:

• repeating the same questions within a short time;
• getting lost on familiar routes;
• difficulty managing bills, recipes or directions that used to be easy;
• changes in mood or behavior that family members notice.

Medication side effects, low vitamin B12, thyroid problems, hearing loss and poor sleep can all affect memory, and a check-up can look for them. A supplement does not replace that visit; if you take medication, ask your doctor or pharmacist before starting one. St. John's wort, one of the ingredients in the advertised formula, interacts with many medications, including antidepressants, blood thinners and birth control.

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Read the product information and seller-listed ingredients before considering a purchase. Research on everyday habits does not establish that this supplement is effective.