30-Second Summary
- Food rich in omega-3 fatty acids helps develop cognitive abilities.
- Regular exercise may improve memory capacity and provide us with better focus.
- Good sleep is very important for the healthy development of the brain in children and adolescents.
- Practice meditation and mindfulness to relieve stress and improve memory and attention.
- Alcohol intake should be in moderation to prevent memory loss episodes and degenerative diseases.
- Plant-based supplements are a great addition to a healthy diet that lacks the right nutrients.
Introduction
Improving memory has always been a hotly debated topic, especially as we get older. Are there ways to improve it?
Well, there are. Some methods are within your reach and don’t require much effort on your part. What’s more, some of them are certainly already part of your lifestyle, but it wouldn’t hurt to pay even more attention to them. Plus, these methods help both your physical and mental health. You can click here for more info related to nutritional products.
Let’s take a look at some of the best tips to improve memory.
Watch your diet. Foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids (fish, milk, nuts, beans, soya, linseed) support cognitive health (1). Other good foods for improving memory are eggs, which are a rich source of B vitamins – B6, B12, and B9 (2).
Modern diets don’t always provide us with the necessary level of vitamins and minerals our bodies require. That’s why specialists recommend supplementing with brain health supplements to improve memory.
One such product is Primal Mind Fuel, a vegan brain booster supplement that promises to enhance memory, focus, and cognitive abilities. Customers who have used the product have seen an increase in overall physical energy and memory performance.
Get physical to focus better. Physical activity is beneficial for a healthy lifestyle and is effective in preventing memory decline. Research developed by the University of Geneva neuroscientists that was carried out on 21 males demonstrated that 15 minutes of intense bicycle workouts could improve memory (3).
Also, a 30-minute walk every day helps if you’re one of those who find it hard to suddenly give up their sedentary lifestyle or can’t do an activity at an intense pace.
Get enough sleep. Restful sleep is extremely important to keep the brain healthy well into old age. You’ve probably already noticed how hard it is the next day to concentrate on the activities you have to do.
A clinical study concerning the effects of sleep on long-term memory in early adolescence observed an increase of 20.6% in declarative memory for the sample group of adolescents who slept more compared to those who were sleep-deprived.
In addition to sleeping at night, you need to take breaks to breathe throughout the day. Disconnect from work for a few minutes and let your mind rest.
Don’t try to multitask. Despite wanting to prove to others that we are efficient, the brain is not used to doing two things at once.
One study indicates that just 2.5% of people are capable of multi-tasking efficiently; while the rest of the people only think they are doing it right when in reality they are not (4).
Ask yourself why it’s hard to read and carry on a conversation at the same time. That’s what happens when you push your brain with multiple tasks at the same time. Do things one at a time.
Relieve stress through meditation. Meditation is great for the brain, so it should become an important part of your healthy lifestyle.
According to a research report on the effects of daily meditation on memory, attention, and mood, patients who practiced regular meditation over 8 weeks have seen a decrease in negative mood and anxiety and an enhancement in attention span, working memory, and recognition memory (5).
Manage your alcohol intake. Cognitive impairments caused by alcohol consumption include memory impairment, impaired decision-making, inability to control emotions, and anxiety.
Many of the effects of alcohol on the brain are similar to vascular dementia, which is the second most common form of dementia.
However, alcohol consumed in moderation (2 drinks per week for men and one drink per week for women) doesn’t affect memory, a study indicates (6).
Use handwriting whenever possible. In the age of technology and smartphones, only a few people write by hand, though the process is very exciting and challenging.
Based on a study from the University of Tokyo, the students who wrote on physical paper led to improved memory (7).
When you want to improve your memory, try to write down your main ideas and leave your laptop aside.
Learn new things constantly. Our brains need daily stimulation. Keep learning, feed your curiosity, look for hobbies, and learn new games.
Try to retain as much information as possible and make sure you remember it for the long term. Write down everything that catches your attention.
According to the American Psychological Association, these are the tips to improve memory:
- Training your brain to remember with mnemonic devices
- Taking mental snapshots – associate any action with an image in your brain.
Laughter is the best medicine. A study by Loma Linda University involving a funny, 20-minute long video shown to a group of healthy elderly and another group of elderly with diabetes depicted some positive results. The group that was amused by the video showed an improvement in all memory-related areas of the brain in comparison to the group that did not have access to the video.
Consider natural plant extract and supplements. Nature has a lot of tools and plants to help us have an almost infallible memory.
Two of the active ingredients found in Youthful Brain are highly praised for their benefits on memory gain:
- Ginkgo Bilobais used as a complementary treatment for degenerative diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (8).
- Bacopa Monnieri – This is a perennial herb which grows quite widely in many parts of the world. It’s used a lot in traditional Ayurvedic medicine
Conclusion
Along with managing stress and anxiety levels, working out regularly, and keeping your memory sharp, our brain’s overall well-being, our ability to think, react, concentrate, and remember are all affected by the nutrients our brain receives.
If your daily diet lacks these nutrients, brain health supplements can help bridge the gap. These supplements are designed to boost memory capacity, creativity, as well as improve cognitive functions. They could also help reduce cognitive decline triggered by aging.
