Mild cognitive impairment is a greater impairment than that expected in normal ageing. It usually involves problems with memory and reasoning, as well as language, expression, etc. People affected by mild cognitive impairment may see their mental capacity reduced, but on other occasions it is the people around them who detect the changes, even if they are not severe enough to alter autonomy and daily activities, in which case we would be looking at a type of dementia. It is important to detect and treat mild cognitive impairment as it increases the risk of suffering from dementia; the most frequent is Alzheimer’s disease. However, in some cases mild cognitive impairment remains stable over time.

Symptoms of mild cognitive impairment

If you detect any loss of your memory or that of a family member, and this is a consistent or growing concern, don’t hesitate to request a specialist assessment. Cognitive problems may be more significant than they appear and may indicate mild cognitive impairment.

• You forget appointments or planned commitments.
• You have trouble following the thread of conversations or when you watch a film or read a book. 
• You forget things you used to remember. 
• You have difficulty expressing yourself clearly, realise that you can’t find the right words, and have trouble understanding conversations.
• You have difficulty making decisions and/or getting organised.
• You don’t remember how to do certain instrumental activities (cooking, putting on the washing machine, etc.).
• You feel that you act more impulsively or aggressively. You are more irritable. You feel apathetic or depressed. Friends and/or family have noticed some of these changes.

Preventing mild cognitive impairment 

Maintaining a healthy brain throughout our lives is a way of preventing or delaying the onset of problems such as mild cognitive impairment. Certain lifestyle habits help promote brain health. These habits and their role in preventing pathologies such as dementia are being investigated in a project from the Barcelona Brain Health Initiative to do research into and promote brain health. Institut Guttmann is the driving force behind this initiative.

Some tips to help maintain brain health are:

• Control vascular risk factors: hypertension, cholesterol, diabetes, smoking and obesity.
• Keep the mind active, train the memory and stimulate cognitive functions.
• Do regular physical exercise.
• Follow a healthy balanced diet.