Two New Zealand sisters are leading the way in ground breaking research into age-related memory loss.

The Memory Foundation has been set up to help people in their 50s and 60s maintain their brain connections to prevent the affects of issues such as dementia.

They also explore new problems arising from things like technology and digital dementia.

Memory Foundation Managing Director Gillian Eadie works alongside her sister Dr Allison Lamont.

Lamont told Francesca Rudkin that her doctoral research work showed that there is a difference in how our brain ages depending on how active we are as we get older.

She says that our brain starts changing in our late 20s, so we need to be thinking about how we treat it from a young age. 

Eadie says that when we move into our late 30s, the changes pick up. 

"It's not often until the 50s and 60s that people start to notice the memory changes that affect their every day life."

The increase of digital technology has also affected our memory, as people "out-source" their memory to electronic devices.

25 per cent of people under the age of 30 don't know their own phone number off by heart. 

Eadie says that the 'brain overload' of modern working are contributing to this. 

Lamont says we need to organise things one task at a time and really take on board what is going on around us.

She cites activities such as putting your glasses down with purpose and noticing where it is will help build those connections. 

Eadie says that it takes seven seconds of repeating and interacting with what we want to remember is key to ensuring we don't forget.