Interference in Memory Recall

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Interference in memory recall can be affected by nutrition deficiencies and stress. Korsakoff’s syndrome which is as a result of a lack of vitamin B1 or thiamine, does adversely affect memory in some patients with alcoholism (Carlson, 2010). Stress has also been found to interfere with recall in people when faced with the stress of surviving a natural disaster. Usually Korsakoff’s syndrome is found in older patients who have drunk alcohol for decades, but the thiamine deficiency can cause cognitive impairments in younger patients also (Terry, 2009).

Seniors with memory recall difficulties are often thought to be suffering dementia, when in some cases as in those with Korsakoff’s syndrome, the cause can actually be that of inadequate diets. Thiamine is not only essential to cognitive functions but also for the “metabolism of carboxylation of pyruvate, an intermediate product in the breakdown of carbohydrates, fats, and amino acids” (Carlson, 2010, p. 550). When “severely malnourished individuals are given intravenous glucose, the sudden availability of glucose to the cells of ...

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