5 Simple Habits to Boost Memory and Learning

Do you ever experience events like these?

Your key placement is flawless. You look down at the table and realize, “They’re on it.” “Right before your eyes,” they said. You end up spending 25 minutes rummaging around for your keys later.

You should get some bread, milk, and butter from the store. A loaf of bread, a gallon of milk, and a stick of butter; no need to write this down. Three simple ingredients: bread, milk, and butter. You remember to pick up milk when you get to the store, but the other two things completely slip your mind.

After Thanksgiving dinner, your nephew asks, “Uncle Billy, remember when Uncle Jimmy reached in front of you and Gram took out the little toy pig you had when you were kids for when people had bad manners and she put it in front of Uncle Jimmy, but then Uncle Jimmy noticed something Uncle Chris did and moved the pig in front of him?” You may be asking yourself, “Where the heck was I on Thanksgiving?”

We’re all susceptible to it. (I’ll be honest and say that all three of those instances are from my own life.)

At the same time, I’ve had the opportunity over the past few years to investigate a wide range of techniques that can help people maintain and strengthen their memories, many of which are grounded in neuroscience. Because, as people get older, one of the biggest worries shared by even the most successful business leaders is that they will lose their memory and other mental faculties.

Let’s go over some of the best of these again before we forget them.

1. Eat specific foods

This is a great one to start with! I love how easy it is to follow simple bits of advice, and adding or emphasising things in your diet is definitely doable. Specifics:

Mushrooms. Exciting news! Australian scientists recently discovered that a particular type of mushrooms contains a compound that can enhance memory and boost nerve growth. Pennsylvania State University researchers discovered that mushrooms, particularly porcini mushrooms, are rich in antioxidants that can help combat age-related health issues such as cancer, coronary heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Great choice! Dark chocolate and cinnamon are both delicious and can be enjoyed in many different ways. Great news! There are a few other tasty foods that can provide cognitive benefits. For example, dark chocolate has been found in an Italian study to provide up to three months of cognitive benefit. Additionally, cinnamon is another delicious option. (a review in Nutritional Neuroscience of more than 2,600 studies found that cinnamon significantly improves cognitive function.)

There are so many delicious and nutritious vegetables to choose from! A Harvard study has provided valuable insights into the eating habits of 27,842 men over a period of 20 years. Great! What did they find? Eating a lot of vegetables and fruit, including fruit juice, can help reduce memory loss in old age.

I’m thrilled to see mushrooms featured in this article! They are such a versatile ingredient that can complement almost any dish.

2. Build good relationships

Focusing on relationships can bring happiness and fulfilment to your life. There are numerous simple and practical ways to enhance relationship quality!

One great thing to do: Develop a habit of auditing your relationships. Great job on writing down your thoughts! Now let’s focus on the positive aspects and categorise the ideas that provide value. We can also identify the areas where we can improve and work on them. Measuring things can make it easier to improve them!

Excitingly, recent research indicates that relationships have a positive impact on memory. A study conducted by Baylor College of Medicine and reported in the journal Neuron found that during times of social connection, astrocytes – the most common cells in our brains – become less active, leading to improved brain circuit function and memory formation.

3. Improve your environment

Exciting news! Michigan State University researchers have discovered that rats kept in brighter environments have a greater capacity for learning and memory compared to those in dimly lit environments.

The study authors suggest that brighter lights can lead to brighter minds.

Great! It seems like we can connect this one with the previous one. The study at the Chronobiology and Sleep Institute at the University of Pennsylvania highlights the importance of getting enough sleep for maintaining vigilance and episodic memory.

It’s amazing to think that even when you’re sleep deprived, your brain can still function and keep you going!

4. Spend your time wisely

There are many cognitive-based activities that can be helpful, including:

Engaging in hobbies such as bird-watching can be a great way to exercise your cognitive abilities and improve your memory skills.

Enjoying the simple pleasure of reading. Great news! According to researchers from the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, reading for pleasure for 90 minutes at a time can strengthen older adults’ memory skills.

Engaging in brain games and crosswords can help improve cognitive abilities and keep the mind sharp. Great news! According to a study by Columbia and Duke universities, participants who did crosswords experienced improvements in cognition, function, and neuroprotection.

5. Walk backward

Great idea, let’s end on a high note! I’m so glad it’s unexpected and quirky, that makes it even more lovable! But, researchers at the University of Roehampton in London came up with the idea of testing whether simply walking backward could trigger better recall.

Great news! It worked! One of the study leads reported that mental time travel to the past induced by motion has shown to enhance mnemonic performance for various types of information. This is a creative and unique name for our new discovery – the ‘mnemonic time-travel effect’!

It’s great that “walking backward” is such an easy and memorable way to refer to “motion-induced past-directed mental time travel.”

You will definitely remember this.

I’m thrilled to share my free e-book, The Free Book of Neuroscience: 13 Ways to Understand and Train Your Brain for Life, because the human brain is truly fascinating and full of surprises!

I’m sure there’s something even more fascinating and important than human memory, but I can’t recall what it is right now.

Courtesy : https://www.inc.com