Struggling
to remember what you were doing this time last month? Still recovering from
that embarrassing incident where you forgot the name of your best friend's
girlfriend? Don't despair - we've consulted the experts to find out how to
improve the health of your memory and bid those goldfish jokes farewell once
and for all.
Fight
the fuzz
Sadly, it's inevitable that our memories will
decline as we age. However, there are various ways we can delay this process.
"Certain major strategies can make a difference," says Professor
Small, director of the Geriatric Psychiatry Division at UCLA's Semel Institute
for Neuroscience and Human Behaviour. "Firstly, we can protect our brain
health through cardiovascular exercise (10-15 minutes each day) and with a
nutritious diet (antioxidant fruits and vegetables, and omega-3 fats (from fish
and nuts)."
Forget
about genetics
While
there's much that we don't understand about the brain, it's definitely all too
easy to underestimate just how easily we can improve - or damage - our
memories. "Only part of it is genetic - the other part is about
lifestyle," points out Professor Murali Doraiswamy, a memory expert at
North Carolina's Duke University Institute for Brain Sciences. "There's a
saying: genetics loads the gun, lifestyle pulls the trigger. More than 300
genes have been identified which could play a role in memory, so we are still
at the very early stages of understanding it.
In mice, scientists have been able to insert special genes which give
them super memories."
Get
physical
Having
a good memory relies on having a healthy brain, and a healthy brain needs a
good blood supply, which is why physical health is so important. "A major problem is that so many people
eat too much," points out Professor Small. "For example, being
overweight doubles your risk of Alzheimer’s disease and obesity quadruples
it. That’s the bad news. The good news
is that losing weight will improve your memory."
Food
for thought
Studies
have shown that monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, which are high
in omega-3 fatty acids - rather than saturated fats - are essential for healthy
cell membranes, particularly those within our brain, and can give our memories
a boost. Monounsaturated fat is also best for our heart and blood vessels, and
this is essential when it comes to providing a steady supply of oxygen and
nutrients to our brain cells. Recent studies also show that the fatty acids
found within cold water fish such as herring, salmon and mackerel protect the
brain cells from damage and can even promote brain cell growth.
Mind
games
In
addition, Professor Small believes that when it comes to our memories, mental
workouts are just as important as physical ones. "We can learn memory
techniques which help compensate for age-related memory loss," he says.
Research has shown that games such as Sudoku can improve memory health by
encouraging the brain to think more strategically. According to experts at the
Professional Association of German Psychiatrists, learning a new language is
one of the best ways to improve your memory, while listening to music can also
help.
Look,
Snap, Connect
The
professor has a suggestion for those keen to boost their memory with a few
mental exercises. "It's called Look, Snap, Connect," says Professor
Small. "Look reminds us to focus attention (not paying attention never
gives us a chance to learn what we want to remember). Snap stands for creating a mental snapshot
(our brains are hardwired to remember visual images). Connect means to link
together your mental snapshots so they are meaningful and thus more
memorable."
Test
yourself
It's
easy to become lazy but making the effort to correctly recall events, dates and
facts is essential when it comes to maintaining a healthy brain. "The
biggest misconception occurs when we believe our memories are accurate even
when they are not," says Professor Small.
"The latest research shows that over time, when we incorrectly
recall something, we are more likely to make similar memory errors in the
future and eventually distort those memories that we are convinced are
true."
Booze
and the brain
When
it comes to booze, drinking too much alcohol won't just leave you struggling to
remember what you got up to last night, but your long term memory could also be
affected. "Alcohol at a high dosage kills cells, so it's not a good
idea," says Professor Eef Hogervorst, a biological psychologist and expert
in memory based at Loughborough's School of Sport, Exercise and Health
Sciences. "Benzodiazepines (sedatives) also really affect memory quite
badly. In fact, recently scientists have found that the use of these calming
agents, such as Valium, is associated with an increased risk of dementia."
Cheers!
The
good news? While drinking too much alcohol should be avoided, the odd tipple
can actually help your memory. "Moderate alcohol consumption (one or two
drinks a day) is associated with better memory ability than abstinence or
excessive alcohol use," points out Professor Small. "It may have to
do with antioxidants in the alcohol or some other compound like resveratrol.
However, it could also be that people who drink in moderation are less stressed
out than others, and we know that chronic stress is not good for memory."
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