7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    1/6

    7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    By Dr. Mercola

    It was once believed that brain function peaked during early adulthood and then slowly

    declined, leading to lapses in memory and brain fog during your golden years.

    Now it's known that our modern lifestyle plays a significant role in contributing to

    cognitive decline, which is why exposure to toxins, chemicals, poor diet, lack of sleep,

    stress, and much more can actually hinder the functioning of your brain.

    The flipside is also true in that a healthy lifestyle can support your brain health and even

    encourage your brain to grow new neurons, a process known as neurogenesis.

    Your brain's hippocampus, i.e. the memory center, is especially able to grow new cells

    and it's now known that your hippocampus regenerates throughout your entire lifetime

    even into your !"s#, provided you give it the tools to do so.

    These $tools$ are primarily lifestyle%based, which is wonderful news. You don't need an

    expensive prescription medication or any medical procedure at all to boost your brain,

    and your memory. You simply must try out the following tricks to improve your memory.

    7 Lifestyle-Based Ways to Improve Your Memory

    1. Eat i!"t

    The foods you eat & and don't eat & play a crucial role in your memory. resh

    vegetables are essential, as are healthy fats and avoiding sugar and grain

    carbohydrates. You can find detailed information about nine foods for brainpower here.

    or instance, curry, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, and walnuts contain antioxidants and

    other compounds that protect your brain health and may even stimulate the production

    of new brain cells.

    Increasing your animal%based omega%(fat intake and reducing consumption of

    damaged omega%) fats think processed vegetable oils# in order to balance your

    omega%( to omega%) ratio, is also important. I prefer krill oil to fish oil, as krill oil also

    contains astaxanthin, which not only protects the omega%( fats from oxidation but also

    appears to be particularly beneficial for brain health.

    *oconut oil is another healthful fat for brain function. +ccording toresearch by r. -ary

    Newport, ust over two tablespoons of coconut oil about (/ ml or 0 level teaspoons#would supply you with the e1uivalent of 2" grams of medium%chain triglycerides -*T#,

    which is indicated as either a preventative measure against degenerative neurological

    diseases, or as a treatment for an already established case.

    #. E$ercise

    3xerciseencourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by stimulating nerve cells

    to multiply, strengthening their interconnections and protecting them from damage.

    http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/29/dr-perlmutter-gluten.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/29/dr-perlmutter-gluten.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/29/dr-perlmutter-gluten.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/10/31/9-foods-brain-health.aspxhttp://foodfacts.mercola.com/broccoli.htmlhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/06/15/benefits-of-astaxanthin-to-your-health.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/12/13/can-this-natural-food-cure-or-prevent-alzheimers.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/12/13/can-this-natural-food-cure-or-prevent-alzheimers.aspxhttp://fitness.mercola.com/http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/10/31/9-foods-brain-health.aspxhttp://foodfacts.mercola.com/broccoli.htmlhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/06/15/benefits-of-astaxanthin-to-your-health.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/12/13/can-this-natural-food-cure-or-prevent-alzheimers.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/12/13/can-this-natural-food-cure-or-prevent-alzheimers.aspxhttp://fitness.mercola.com/http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/29/dr-perlmutter-gluten.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/29/dr-perlmutter-gluten.aspx
  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    2/6

    uring exercise nerve cells release proteins known as neurotrophic factors. 4ne in

    particular, called brain%derived neurotrophic factor 5N#, triggers numerous other

    chemicals that promote neural health, and directly benefits cognitive functions, including

    learning.

    + 2"6" study on primates published in Neurosciencealso revealed that regular exercisenot only improved blood flow to the brain, but also helped the monkeys learn new tasks

    twice as 1uickly as non%exercising monkeys.

    This is a benefit the researchers believe would hold true for people as well. 6In a

    separate one year%long study, individuals who engaged in exercise were actually

    growing and expanding the brain's memory centerone to two percent per year, where

    typically that center would have continued to decline in si7e.

    To get the most out of your workouts, I recommend a comprehensive program that

    includes high%intensity interval exercise, strength training, stretching, and core work,

    along with regular intermittent movement.

    %. &top Multitaski'!

    8sed for decades to describe the parallel processing abilities of computers, multitaskingis now shorthand for the human attempt to do simultaneously as many things as

    possible, as 1uickly as possible. 8ltimately, multitasking may actually slow you down,

    make you prone to errors as well as make you forgetful.

    9esearch shows you actually need about eight seconds to commit a piece of

    information to your memory, so if you're talking on your phone and carrying in groceries

    when you put down your car keys, you're unlikely to remember where you left them.

    The opposite of multitasking would be mindfulness, which helps you achieve

    undistracted focus. :tudents who took a mindfulness class improved reading

    comprehension test scores and working memory capacity, as well as experienced fewerdistracting thoughts.2

    If you find yourself trying to complete five tasks at once, stop yourself and focus your

    attention back to the task at hand. If distracting thoughts enter your head, remind

    yourself that these are only $proections,$ not reality, and allow them to pass by without

    stressing you out. You can then end your day with a 6"% or 6/%minute meditation

    session to help stop your mind from wandering and relax into a restful sleep.

    (. )et a )ood *i!"t+s &leep

    9esearch from ;arvard indicates that people are (( percent more likely to infer

    connections among distantly related ideas after sleeping,(but few reali7e that their

    performance has actually improved. :leep is also known to enhance your memories

    and help you $practice$ and improve your performance of challenging skills. In fact, a

    single night of sleeping only four to six hours can impact your ability to think clearly the

    next day.

    The process of brain growth, or neuroplasticity,is believed to underlie your brain's

    capacity to control behavior, including learning and memory.

  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    3/6

    and sleep loss modify the expression of several genes and gene products that may be

    important for synaptic plasticity.

    urthermore, certain forms of long%term potentiation, a neural process associated with

    the laying down of learning and memory, can be elicited in sleep, suggesting synaptic

    connections are strengthened while you slumber.

    +s you might suspect, this holds true for infants too, and research shows that naps can

    give a boost to babies' brainpower. :pecifically, infants who slept in between learning

    and testing sessions had a better ability to recogni7e patterns in new information, which

    signals an important change in memory that plays an essential role in cognitive

    development.=There's reason to believe this holds true for adults, too, as even among

    adults, a mid%day nap was found to dramatically boost and restore brainpower. /You can

    find (( tips to help you get the shut%eye you need here.

    ,. lay Brai' )ames

    If you don't sufficiently challenge your brain with new, surprising information, it

    eventually begins to deteriorate. >hat research into brain plasticity shows us, however,

    is that by providing your brain with appropriate stimulus, you can counteract thisdegeneration.

    4ne way to challenge your brain is via 'brain games,' which you can play online via >eb

    sites like ?umosity.com. r. -ichael -er7enich, professor emeritus at the 8niversity of

    *alifornia, who I interviewed two years ago, has pioneered research in brain plasticity

    also called neuroplasticity# for more than (" years, has also developed a computer%

    based brain%training program that can help you sharpen a range of skills, from reading

    and comprehension to improved memori7ation and more.

    The program is called 5rain ;@, and the website has many different exercises designed

    to improve brain function and it also allows you to track and monitor your progress over

    time. >hile there are many similar sites on the >eb, 5rain ;@ is one of the oldest and

    most widely used.

    If you decide to try brain games, ideally it would be wise to invest at least 2" minutes a

    day, but no more than five to seven minutes is to be spent on a specific task. >hen you

    spend longer amounts of time on a task, the benefits weaken. +ccording to r.

    -er7enich, the primary benefits occur in the first five or six minutes of the task. The only

    downside to brain games is that it may become ust another $task$ you need to fit into

    an already busy day. If you don't enoy brain games, you can also try learning a new

    skill or hobby see below#.

    . Master a *e/ &kill

    3ngaging in $purposeful and meaningful activities$ stimulates your neurological system,

    counters the effects of stress%related diseases, reduces the risk of dementia and

    enhances health and well%being.)+ key factor necessary for improving your brain

    function or reversing functional decline is the seriousness of purposewith which you

    engage in a task. In other words, the task must be important to you, or somehow

    meaningful or interesting A it must hold your attention.

    http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn4http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn5http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/02/secrets-to-a-good-night-sleep.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/12/09/brain-plasticity.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn6http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn4http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn5http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/02/secrets-to-a-good-night-sleep.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/12/09/brain-plasticity.aspxhttp://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/04/24/memory-improvement-tricks.aspx#_edn6
  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    4/6

    or instance, one study revealed that craft activities such as 1uilting and knitting were

    associated with decreased odds of having mild cognitive impairment.0+nother study,

    published earlier this year, found that taking part in $cognitively demanding$ activities

    like learning to 1uilt or take digital photography enhanced memory function in older

    adults.BThe key is to find an activity that is mentally stimulating for you. Ideally this

    should be something that re1uires your undivided attention and gives you greatsatisfactionC it should be an activity that you look forward to doing, such as playing a

    musical instrument, gardening, building model ships, crafting or many others.

    7. Try M'emo'ic Devices

    -nemonic devices are memory tools to help you remember words, information or

    concepts. They help you to organi7e information into an easier%to%remember format. TryD

    +cronyms such as

  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    5/6

    +s part of a healthy lifestyle, however, I prefer an intermittent fastingschedule that

    simply calls for limiting your eating to a narrower window of time each day. 5y restricting

    your eating to a )%B hour window, you effectively fast 6)%6B hours each day. To learn

    more, please see this previous intermittent fasting article.

    )ut 2ealt"

    Your gut is your $second brain,$ and your gut bacteria transmits information to your brainvia the vagus nerve, the tenth cranial nerve that runs from your brain stem into your

    enteric nervous system the nervous system of your gastrointestinal tract#. There is a

    close connection between abnormal gut flora and abnormal brain development, and ust

    as you have neurons in your brain, you also have neurons in your gut %% including

    neurons that produce neurotransmitters like serotonin, which is also found in your brain

    and is linked to mood.

    @uite simply, your gut health can impact your brain function, psyche, and behavior, as

    they are interconnected and interdependent in a number of different ways. In addition to

    avoiding sugar, one of the best ways to support gut health is to consume beneficial

    bacteria. You can use a probiotic supplement for this, but I'm particularly fond ofusing fermented vegetables, because they can deliver extraordinarily high levels of

    beneficial bacteria. -ost people aren't aware that in a healthy serving of sauerkraut &

    two to three ounces or so & you're getting the e1uivalent of nearly 6"" capsules of the

    highest%potency probiotic you can buy. It's clearly one of the most cost%effective

    alternatives.

    T"e 3"oli'e-Brai' 3o''ectio'

    *holine is an essential nutrient your body makes in small amounts. ;owever, you must

    consume it through your diet to get enough. In adults, choline helps keep your cellmembranes functioning properly, plays a role in nerve communications, prevents the

    buildup of homocysteine in your blood elevated levels are linked to heart disease# and

    reduces chronic inflammation. In pregnant women, choline plays an e1ually, if not more,

    important role, helping to prevent certain birth defects, such as spina bifida, and playing

    a role in brain development.

  • 8/9/2019 7 Tricks to Improve Your Memory

    6/6

    cholineG if you're a vegan or vegetarian who does not consume any animal foods, you

    may be at risk of deficiency and may want to consider supplementation.