A couple of years ago my memory was failing fast. It was going downhill in a big way :(

Then I started getting proper sleep and it came back straight away. It was kind of strange and at the time I didn't see the two as being related, but after the event it was obvious.

Edit. Mine was getting so bad I couldn't remember where light switches are in rooms that I've walked into (nearly) every day for the last 15 years.

Actually drawing the face of a clock really is the first thing to go with someone with either dementia or Alzheimers. Just the circle with numbers is enough to show problems. Next is counting backwards from 100 by 7s.

For normal memory loss the first sign is walking into another room and forgetting what you went in there for.

Lead poisoning?

Arsenic poisoning?

Mercury poisoning?

Alcohol?

I think long term exposure to any of these is bad on the brain/memory.

Stress is a big one and can be coupled with sleep loss for a double whammy.

Having this problem myself, maybe not quite so severe. I often can't remember my coworkers names though and I think that's pretty bad since I'm only 45. But I have some new health problems and have been taking a water pill which along with diabetes makes me wake up about 5 times a night on average. I also abused alcohol for many years

I think you should be blunt and tell this guy what your observing and ask him if he is ok. Could be something dangerous

I am amazed at the things I have to remember for my prototyping job in the rubber industry. At 52 years old, I can still recall details about things that happened a year or two ago.

That being said, I will forget to turn into a parking lot for something I have to get on my shopping list for home (I just drive on by) or forget other domestic things that aren't critical.

I have learned to make lists for the things I can't forget.

It sounds like this guy has something else on his mind, or like someone else mentioned, maybe a drug side effect.

Most instances of impairment of short-term memory is due to not making the effort to memorize whatever it is such as names, a number, shopping item, etc.

Then there is evidence that the brains of some people are just not wired to easily remember certain classes of information. My father NEVER forgot a face. He would recognize people he had not seen for 30 years. I've personally witnessed him go up to somebody and say, 'I know you...' and proceed to glean the where and when of it. It could be a car salesman from way back, a colleague a neighbor or whatever from decades prior.

At the same time, he'd spend more time looking for a tool he just laid down than actually fixing whatever he needed the tool for. That is if he could remember what tool he was looking for in the first place.

He cauld also give accurate directions on how to get around downtown Detroit when he had not actually even been there for years and years.

I've lived in my town for 25 years and still don't even know the names of most of the streets: 'Go down three lights, turn left at Burger King, two blocks on the right is Jones' hardware store, turn left, go past the stop sign and its on the right...'