Should you worry about your brain fog?

The impairment, often associated with long Covid, doesn't mean you're more likely to get dementia or Alzheimer's disease.

- F.D. Flam

The phrase "brain fog" has exploded in our collective lexicon in recent years, along with complaints and concerns about "senior moments", forgotten names, lost items, an inability to focus and clouded thinking.

To add to our common distress, a recent Bloomberg News explainer highlighted several studies showing that Covid-19 damaged our brains by shrinking their volume, diminishing our cognitive performance and increasing the presence of protein deposits associated with Alzheimer's disease.

So, how worried should we be? A minority of those infected with the virus did develop what has become known as "long Covid". Doctors say brain fog is the most common symptom of the syndrome, which can also include fatigue, insomnia, tinnitus and balance problems. Could the rest of us "Covid-19 survivors"—now the vast majority of the population—suffer from some milder form of the disorder? It is a scary thought, made worse by the studies suggesting that Covid-19 carries a higher dementia risk.

But so much has happened since Covid-19 swept through the population. Technology has changed the demands of our work and personal lives, stress has taken a toll on some of us, and we are aging. There might be other, less alarming explanations for brain fog than some indelible damage from this particular virus.