Memory is a very important part of life. If we can’t remember anything, we wouldn’t have any loved ones, passions, hobbies, or even know our own personalities.
It is needless to say that we have to have our memory. However, as we age our memory might actually start to decline. It is extremely important to take some precautionary measures in order to preserve your memory and overall brain health. We once thought that memory peaked when we were young, and then as we got older it slowly declined regardless of any outside exposure. However, researchers have discovered that we can take preventive measures to protect our memory.
Researchers have discovered that we can improve our memory, overall brain health, and prevent mental disorders by just doing a few things. The lifestyle you live has a lot to do with the overall health of your brain and your memory. You can be performing at your mental peak and your physical peak just by eating healthy and staying active! You don’t need any of the expensive and toxic medications that are on the market today either; they are terrible for your health, and a lot of them might even play into the progression and formation of Alzheimer’s Disease. If you want to preserve your memory, all you have to do is follow these easy steps.
Eat Right – Eating right can have a huge impact on your health. It is essential to consume fresh vegetables and fruits in order to receive all of the nutrients your body needs. Celery and Broccoli have tremendous benefits for the brain because they contain antioxidants and other compounds that play into preserving your cognitive health. You should also increase the amount of omega 3 fats you’re taking in too. They can be essential in neurogenesis, the formation of new brain cells.
Exercise – Exercising has many more benefits than just making your body leaner and look better. Exercising and staying active is essential in improving your memory because it stimulates new nerve cells to multiply. It additionally strengthens the interconnections of nerve cells and protects them from damage. A 2010 study published in Neuroscience also reveals that regular exercise improves blood flow to the brain and also helped monkeys learn new tasks twice as quickly as nonexercising monkeys.
Do One thing at a Time – Multitasking has been shown to be really bad for our brain, especially our hippocampus, the memory center of the brain. Multitasking slows you down and decreases productivity. Research shows that you need a total of eight seconds to commit a piece of information to your memory, so it is important to do one thing at a time and focus on only that task.
Get a Good Night’s Sleep – Research from Harvard University indicates that people are 3 percent more likely to infer connections among distantly related ideas after sleeping. A good night’s rest is extremely important, and without it, you can experience a world of issues.
Play Brain Games – brain games have been proven to have a positive effect on your brain. They stimulate the production of new brain cells and increase neuroplasticity. You can challenge your brain on lumosity.com, a program designed by Dr. Michael Merzenich, that contains tons of different brain games that are fun and awesome for your brain.
Master a New Skill – mastering a skill can require time and dedication, but in the end, it really pays off. You not only have acquired a new skill, but you have made tremendous improvements to your brain. One study showed that craft activities such as quilting and knitting were associated with decreased odds of having mild cognitive impairment.
Mnemonic Devices – Mnemonic devices are grammatical tools designed to make you remember a word or a phrase. They help you organize information into an easy to remember format. These devices include acronyms, visualizations, rhymes, and chunking. You can see examples of this in things all over the place, such as the YMCA (Young Men’s Christian Association). Remembering these devices can really improve your memory. In a way, it’s a little brain game.
Vitamin D – vitamin D is an excellent nutrient that can improve your memory. There are activated vitamin D receptors that increase nerve growth in your brain. Researchers have been able to locate metabolic pathways for vitamin D in the hippocampus and cerebellum of the brain. Research has shown that low vitamin D levels are associated with poor brain function, and increasing it might even help keep adults mentally fit.