Do experts think that treating depression can actually help improve memory?

Yes, very often! And that is one of the nicest things about treating depression in older adults, because people generally do worry about their memory if they are feeling depressed. Depression certainly affects memory, and the more depressive episodes that the person has, the higher the likelihood that the person later will have cognitive impairment.

So treating depression makes a huge difference in cognitive performance. I actually had a patient who had neurological testing about two years apart, and dramatically improved because of treated depression.