Imagine that you are sitting inside a windowless train, and the train is speeding along at 2,000 miles per hour. Now imaging that you are on the same train, but you are not moving at all. Would you feel any different? The answer is no. Without any external reference points, such as passing trees, and without acceleration, any constant speed will feel exactly the same to you -- whether that speed is nothing or the speed of light. In a sense, our brain operates as if we are sitting in a windowless train traveling at the constant speed of aging. Without a reference point, no brain -- not even a smart one -- would be able to determine its own aging.

While we can't recognize a change in brain speed, many people do know that something has changed with their thinking. And if you sense that you are not as smart or quick as you used to be, you know it is an uncomfortable feeling. Some refer to it as "brain fog," because they know that they used to feel smarter but the thoughts are just not coming together as quickly. What's happening is that when brain processing speed declines, you are literally thinking slower and remembering less. New information that you are presented with does not "stick" in your mind, and older memories are harder to recall. At the same time, a decline in brain chemical production causes brain cell death. Fewer neurons mean an additional decrease in the capacity to retain information. What's more, not only does an aging brain think slower, but there is a separation between thinking and then doing. You know that you have things you need to do, but you can't quite figure out how to get them done, or you forget to take care of them. Once you bump into these problems repeatedly, you need to start rebalancing your brain.

THE CAUSES OF MILD COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT

Aging is the number one cause of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). As you get older, your brain develops chemical imbalances. If you do not act to fix them, you are actually leaving your brain and your body open to get sicker.

What's more, there are hundreds of other reasons for your brain to tip toward dementia. Some of these factors are directly linked to specific brain chemical deficiencies that occur with aging or illness. Others are connected to lifestyle or environment.

Addiction. Any type of addition, including to alcohol, street drugs (marijuana, cocaine, crystal meth, heroin, Ecstasy, nexus, ketamine, opium, Rohypnol, crack, hallucinogens, inhalants), overeating, gambling, or even shopping, is related to imbalanced dopamine. What's more, addictive substances directly cause cognitive failures. For example, alcoholics are notorious for experiencing blackouts, actual memory gaps that occur even when they are conscious. Most illegal street drugs tamper with memory, cloud judgment, limit attention, and increase forgetfulness.