Baek Ji-young Gets Tested for Dementia: “I Don’t Even Know Why I Opened the Fridge” [Health Talk]

[Financial News] Singer Baek Ji-young, 50, said severe forgetfulness had led to a dementia test. She said she was told the results showed she did not have dementia, but that her memory problems were severe. Forgetfulness can happen to anyone, but if someone repeatedly forgets recent experiences or has difficulty with daily activities, cognitive function testing may be needed to identify the cause.
A video titled “The Original Tough Older Sister, 82-Year-Old Sunwoo Yong-nyeo, Visits Tough Older Sister Baek Ji-young’s Home and Cooks a Home-Cooked Meal” was posted on the YouTube channel “Soonpoong Sunwoo Yongyeo” on the 29th of last month.
In the video, Sunwoo Yong-nyeo visited Baek Ji-young’s home, prepared food herself, and shared a meal with her. During their conversation, Baek Ji-young tried to introduce a brand of chopsticks but was flustered when she could not remember its name.
Baek Ji-young worried about her memory, saying, “I keep forgetting things these days. What should I do?” Sunwoo Yong-nyeo replied, “You always have to keep thinking,” and explained that she does not even take a photo of where she parked, so she can keep her memory sharp.

When the production team mentioned that Sunwoo Yong-nyeo had recently scored nearly full marks on a dementia test, Baek Ji-young said she had also taken a test.
Baek Ji-young said, “I got a score, and they told me I didn’t have dementia. They said my forgetfulness was quite severe.”
Baek Ji-young also opened up about forgetfulness in her daily life. She said, “Sometimes I leave the refrigerator door open and stand there staring into it for a long time because I don’t know why I opened it.”


It is common in daily life to forget where you put something or suddenly be unable to remember what you were about to do. But repeated memory lapses do not necessarily mean that someone has dementia.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s National Health Information Portal, dementia is a condition in which cognitive functions such as memory, language ability, and judgment steadily decline to the point of interfering with daily or social life.
With ordinary forgetfulness, people often forget part of an experience but remember it again later or after someone else explains it to them.
By contrast, dementia can involve symptoms such as being unable to remember the experience itself or asking the same question repeatedly. A decline in the ability to carry out familiar tasks is also characteristic.
For example, forgetting where you put something and remembering later can happen with ordinary forgetfulness. But if someone repeatedly cannot remember having put something down at all, or confuses the purpose of an item they use often, their cognitive function may need to be assessed.
These differences alone, however, cannot determine whether someone has dementia. Memory and the ability to manage daily activities must be assessed comprehensively.

As in the experience Baek Ji-young described, opening the refrigerator and then forgetting what you meant to take out can also happen with forgetfulness.
Memory involves taking in and storing information, then recalling it when needed. If attention shifts elsewhere or someone handles several things at once, they may not fully remember what they initially intended to do.
In particular, lack of sleep, fatigue, stress, and depression can affect concentration and memory. So if you feel your memory has recently worsened, it is important to consider when the symptoms began, how often they occur, your sleep, and any medications you take.
Baek Ji-young shared on the program that her test results indicated severe forgetfulness, but did not disclose the specific type of test, her score, or the cause of her memory problems.


Mild cognitive impairment is a condition in which memory loss is noticeable, but a person can still manage most daily activities.
According to Seoul National University Hospital’s medical information, mild cognitive impairment is a condition in which objective tests confirm a decline in memory or other cognitive functions, while the ability to carry out daily activities remains intact.
The key distinction from dementia is the impact on daily life.
People with mild cognitive impairment can manage basic daily activities independently, even if their memory, attention, or other abilities have declined. If the condition progresses to dementia, however, they may have difficulty with familiar activities such as managing money, taking medication, or keeping track of schedules.
Seoul National University Hospital says that about 1–2% of cognitively healthy older adults develop dementia each year, compared with about 10–15% of people with mild cognitive impairment.
However, mild cognitive impairment does not inevitably progress to dementia. Depending on the cause and the person’s condition, cognitive function may remain stable or improve.
Baek Ji-young said she was told that she did not have dementia, but did not say she had been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment.

Even severe forgetfulness does not necessarily indicate dementia if it does not interfere with daily life. However, if memory problems worsen or become noticeable to people around you, you should consider getting tested.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s National Health Information Portal provides a 14-item “Subjective Memory Complaints Questionnaire (SMCQ)” to assess subjective memory problems.
The questionnaire includes questions about whether it is difficult to remember recent events, whether conversations from a few days ago are hard to recall, whether you often forget where you put things, and whether you have ever gotten lost in a familiar place.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency recommends seeing a doctor to determine whether someone has mild cognitive impairment or dementia if they score 6 or higher on the questionnaire.
Professional assessment is also necessary, regardless of the score, if someone becomes less capable at tasks they used to handle well or has difficulty with social or daily life because of memory problems.
Cognitive function tests assess not only memory but also attention, language ability, judgment, and visuospatial skills. If needed, additional tests such as blood tests and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help determine whether another condition may be causing the memory problems.

Managing lifestyle habits is also important for reducing memory problems and maintaining cognitive health.
To help prevent cognitive decline, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency recommends regular exercise, not smoking, limiting alcohol, eating a balanced diet, and managing chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Physical activity may improve cardiovascular health and help reduce the risk of cerebrovascular disease. A lifestyle that maintains cognitive stimulation through activities such as reading, learning, and socializing is also recommended.
However, maintaining memory does not mean you have to memorize everything or avoid taking notes. Taking a photo of where you parked or using a calendar can help ease the burden on your memory in daily life.
If you are experiencing severe sleep deprivation or stress, it is also important to address those factors.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency does not recommend relying on so-called “brain supplements” without first identifying the cause of cognitive decline. It says there is still insufficient scientific evidence that any particular health supplement prevents dementia in healthy people.

[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter