What Senility Involves

• When brain cells degenerate, the cellular connections do not fire off correctly all the time, causing comprehension problems. Symptoms can include loss of short-term memory (very common), confusion and loss of judgment skills (common), inability to concentrate and even behavioral changes such as personality shifts and an unwillingness to eat. A few of these signs do not automatically mean dementia is setting in, but combined they make the case for loss of mental skills necessary to function independently.
  
  

Causes

• Senility can set in due to basic degradation of the brain or poor health practices. One of the most significant is Alzheimer's disease. This affliction progressively breaks down the brain connections, leaving the patient incoherent and disconnected in the last stages. Ultimately, it can cause death. Genetics can also play a role. Finally, a person's lifestyle habits affect later mental capacity. A poor diet, smoking, alcoholism and lack of exercise all contribute to mental degradation in affected seniors.
  
  

Early Signs

• Senility or dementia takes time to develop. An early sign is an inability to remember details or conversations in the short term, although the person may easily recall events of 20 years ago. As time goes on, the person may occasionally show impaired judgment, behave erratically or converse in a manner that doesn't make sense.
  
  

Slowing Down Is Not Senility

• Senility should be confirmed by a doctor. As a person ages, he may seem slower, but this should not be construed as a loss of mental capacity. There are many seniors with slower speech and listening skills who retain their mental capacity. In some cases, simple, regular exercise helps by strengthening blood vessels and improving circulation.