In various ways, our memories shape who we are, whether it’s the stories we tell
ourselves about what we’ve done throughout our lives or the human beings that we’ve made
relationships with during our existence. As stated by the highly regarded Harvard Health
Publishing, “ In short, our memories are crucial to the essence of who we are as human beings.
That means age-related memory loss can represent a loss of self.” (2022) Memories that were
once deeply cherished and persevered can soon fade away within time and the type of choices we
make within our lifespan. The lifestyle choices an individual carelessly makes can severely
impact their memory later on in life and can influence the rate of memory impairment leading to
memory-loss diseases such as Alzheimers or Dementia. A report from the Alzheimer’s
Association 2024 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures defines Alzheimers as, “a type of brain
disease, just as coronary artery disease is a type of heart disease. It is caused by damage to nerve
cells (neurons) in the brain. The brain’s neurons are essential to all human activity, including
thinking, talking and walking.” (2024) Essentially, these memory-loss disorders result in the
difficulty in remembering certain events and individuals in one’s life as well as causing severe
difficulties in average everyday activities. Thus this study seeks to answer: to what extent does
lifestyle influence memory impairment? Overall, this will be an analysis through the scientific,
social, and cultural angles that effectively demonstrates how the type of lifestyle one leads has a
significant impact on memory impairment. The following research will delve into the complex
relationship between lifestyle cognitive function, revealing how our everyday choices shape our
memory retainment.