Health Matters: How to improve & maintain good memory

A strong memory depends on the health and vitality of your brain. Whether you’re a student studying for final exams, a working professional interested in doing all you can to stay mentally sharp, or a senior looking to preserve and enhance your grey matter as you age, there are lots of things you can do to improve your memory and mental performance as follow…

Give your brain a workout: By the time you’ve reached adulthood, your brain has developed millions of neural pathways that help you process and recall information quickly, solve familiar problems, and execute familiar tasks with a minimum of mental effort. But if you always stick to these well-worn paths, you aren’t giving your brain the stimulation it needs to keep growing and developing. You have to shake things up from time to time! Memory, like muscular strength, requires you to “use it or lose it.” The more you work out your brain, the better you’ll be able to process and remember information.

Don’t skip the physical exercise: While mental exercise is important for brain health, that doesn’t mean you never need to break a sweat. Physical exercise helps your brain stay sharp. It increases oxygen to your brain and reduces the risk for disorders that lead to memory loss, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Exercise also enhances the effects of helpful brain chemicals and reduces stress hormones.

Get enough sleep: There is a big difference between the amount of sleep you can get by on and the amount you need to function at your best. The truth is that over 95 per cent of adults need between 7.5 to nine hours of sleep every night in order to avoid sleep deprivation. Sleep is critical to learning and memory in an even more fundamental way. Sleep is necessary for memory consolidation, with the key memory-enhancing activity occurring during the deepest stages of sleep.

Wait 8 Seconds : When’s the last time you devoted 8 seconds to remembering someone’s name when you meet them? Can’t recall? Then that’s probably why you forgot their name already. Some say 8 seconds is how long it takes to completely move new information from your short-term memory to your long-term memory bank. When you meet someone, repeat their name out loud, then spend a few more seconds in your mind coming up with creative or visual ways to associate that name with their face or with an object or situation that’s connected with them.