Forgetfulness is a part of everyone’s life, but when should you worry that it may be the symptom of something worse?

Here are 5 signs that your forgetfulness may be a sign of something more serious.

Your memory problems frighten you.

You’ve changed how you work or play because of memory problems.

Friends or family point out mistakes and/or express concern.

You notice friends or family starting to cover for you.

You find it hard to make choices.

“For many people with early dementia, the nature of the memory problems frighten them or cause a strong emotional reaction,” Robbins says. The fear tends to stem from knowing in your gut that something’s “just not right.”

Other examples: You’re uneasy because you can’t explain how your car keys wound up in the refrigerator — and it’s the second or third time you’ve found them in an odd spot. Or you’re driving down the road and suddenly have no idea where you are or where you’re heading — and a few moments later, you realize you’re on the same old road to work.

Talk to your physician about your concerns and help him/her to create a baseline of your mental health to monitor any changes or reason for concern.

Studies find that even mild activity is better than no activity when it comes to preventing Alzheimer’s.

For those whom may be too frail for swimming or gym activities it appears as though light housework and gardening can be effective ways to keep active and avoid the disease.

The study, which was published this week in the journal Neurology, included 716 dementia-free men and women in their 70s and 80s. Compared with the most active people, those with the lowest levels of overall physical activity had more than double the risk of going on to develop Alzheimer’s. Greater physical activity was also associated with a slower rate of aging-related memory and cognitive decline.

“This suggests that people in their 80s who can’t participate in formal exercise still get a benefit by leading a more active lifestyle,” says lead author Dr. Aron S. Buchman, associate professor of neurological sciences at Rush University Medical Center, in Chicago. “You don’t have to get a membership in the local YMCA. If you walk up some more steps, stand up and do the dishes more, you stand to benefit because it’s incremental and adds up over the course of a full day.”

The key is to keep moving!

There is no causal relationship between mental exercise and decreasing the incidence of Alzheimer’s and dementia, however, using your brain does increase overall neural stimulation and growth.

Many studies do find that being mentally active is associated with a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease. But the standard caveat applies: association does not prove cause and effect, and there is always the chance that the mentally active people who never got Alzheimer’s simply had healthier brains to begin with.

Even, so, researchers say, there is no harm in telling people to try to stay engaged.

Extended study and learning new things can help overall wellness by contributing to increased confidence, social activity and independence which greatly improves the lives of the elderly.

Although no one wants to look at caring for an ill loved one as a burden, however, there is no denying the overwhelming financial cost involved.

Unpaid caregivers are a huge part of the economy which is growing every year with the increase in Alzheimer’s and dementia cases as baby boomers age.

There is an urgent need to address this national emergency.

Caring for a family member with the personality-draining disease can take a hefty financial and emotional toll. Nearly 15 million people fall into the role of unpaid caregiver for those sick with dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Add it all up, and it comes to about 17 billion hours of unpaid care valued at $202 billion in 2010 alone.

So to help with the staggering cost of care, the Obama Administration has included $26 million in the proposed 2013 budget. That money will go to education, outreach and support for families affected by the disease.

Dementia and Alzheimer’s among elderly inmates creates an interesting dynamic within the prison population.

Some of the most hardened criminals come to the aid of ailing inmates, helping them with the most intimate of care with compassion and patience.

Dementia in prison is an underreported but fast-growing phenomenon, one that many prisons are desperately unprepared to handle. It is an unforeseen consequence of get-tough-on-crime policies — long sentences that have created a large population of aging prisoners. About 10 percent of the 1.6 million inmates in America’s prisons are serving life sentences; another 11 percent are serving over 20 years.