We all forget things from time to time, and in most cases, there’s no reason to worry about it.
Healthy people can experience memory loss or memory distortion at any age and new research has shown feeling low or sad can make you more forgetful.
Researchers at the University of Aberdeen monitored how reliable people were at carrying out tasks and whether their mood affected the chances of them completing it.
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The study found that feeling blue can make people less likely to remember to perform everyday tasks like posting a letter or returning a call.
There are many other things that can affect your memory, too.
Dr Katharina Schnitzspahn, who co-led the study, says: "Our results suggest a clear relationship between our emotional states and our cognitive performance and highlights the need to reduce stress and negative feelings in order to help us remember and perform our planned intentions."
Here are eight potential explanations for forgetfulness.
Low mood
Dr Schnitzspahn said: "Our study, and previous work in the laboratory, show an association between mood and remembering intentions - the better the mood, the better we remember our tasks."
High blood pressure
Studies suggest physiological factors like high blood pressure are linked to reduced memory.
Stress and anxiety
If you're feeling stressed or anxious, it can make it harder to concentrate and lock in new information or retrieve old memories.
Dr Schnitzspahn said: "Acute stress is negatively related to prospective memory - our ability to remember and perform delayed intentions.
"This was also true for stress experienced during the pandemic."
Depression
You may be more forgetful if you're depressed, and studies show depressive symptoms have an adverse effect on the immediate recall of new information.
Not getting enough sleep
Most of us have experienced how being tired can dull your memory, and studies have confirmed that sleep deprivation causes short- and long-term cognitive impairment, affecting memory as well as thinking and attention.
Drinking too much alcohol
Having too much booze can interfere with short-term memory, even after the effects of alcohol have worn off.
Obviously how much is too much varies from person to person, but the NHS recommends men and women don't drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis, and spread your drinking over three or more days if you regularly drink 14 units a week.
Pregnancy
Research has found pregnant women are significantly impaired on some, but not all, measures of memory.
Vitamin B-12 deficiency
Some studies suggest vitamin B-12 deficiency is linked to impaired cognition and memory, and the NHS website lists "memory loss" as a symptom of those who aren't getting enough of the vitamin.
If you are worried about memory problems that are affecting your day-to-day life you should see your GP.
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