Train Your Brain to Remember
The Most Common Techniques for Memory Enhancement
We’ve all done it. I certainly have. You walk into a room and you have absolutely no idea why you’re there. Or how about those times when the word you’re looking for is on the tip of your tongue, yet you just can’t seem to find it in your mind.
Some of you may call these “senior moments.” I have even heard them humorously termed “brain farts.” Having these forgetful moments once in a while is normal. However, this really doesn’t have to be. You can begin now to preserve your short term memory … before your forgetfulness becomes more frequent.
Most people wait until their lack of short term memory is affecting their daily life before they do something about it. But memory loss can be prevented! Nutrition, natural supplements and brain exercises can preserve your memory well into your senior years!
Consider how amazing and complex the human brain is! Even when you aren’t actively thinking, your brain:
- Works constantly 24/7
- Processes 2000 messages a second
- Sends information throughout the body at a speed faster than 200 mph
- Maintains your respirations, your temperature and the digestion of your food among hundreds of other functions
Truly, nothing in the body works without your brain!
From infancy into childhood, our brain is constantly developing, growing and learning. Even into adulthood, our brain continues to develop. For example, the cerebral frontal cortex of the brain, which contains our reasoning and impulse control, does not fully develop until we are 24 to 25 years old! Looking back I’m sure many of us can relate to seeing a change in our decisions once we reached our mid-twenties. Social lives, parties, and spur of the moment decisions gave way to rational, more mature decisions.
As we continue to age, a variety of influences begin to affect our brain negatively. I remember my first moment of what I like to call “momnesia” after I had my first child. I left for the grocery store with a mental list of what I needed to purchase. But when I got inside the store, I could only remember a couple items! Prior to having kids, I had such a fantastic memory that I never needed to make lists or write anything down.
Disruptions in short term memory can be caused by:
- Surges in hormones
- Poor nutrition
- Stress
- Maternal instinct development during pregnancy
- Breastfeeding
Into our late adult years an even greater decline in short term memory can begin to occur. People in their 50s typically begin to feel their memory slipping more often than ever before. However, this so-called normal decline in memory doesn’t have to be the case. The brain has an amazing capacity to continue to develop, but we must be willing and take the initiative.
Training the Brain to Remember
Memory occurs in 3 stages:
- Encoding: This is when a person takes in information.
- Consolidation: This is when the brain takes the information it encodes and processes it so that it gets stored.
- Retrieval: When a person recalls the stored information.
Most of the time, poor memory issues occur in the retrieval stage. The information is still taken in and stored. However, retrieving that information can be difficult. You can enhance the retrieval of this information and increase your memory into later adult years with mental training techniques.
These techniques can be used over and over in any situation to improve your memory and keep your mind sharp. People almost always remember an image or picture better than they do mere written or verbal information. So incorporating a mental image works best for retrieval.
The most common mental techniques for memory enhancement include:
The Keyword Method
With this method, you associate the sound of the word and it’s meaning with a very unusual or outlandish mental image. This image-association creates mental labels for the things you want to remember. For example, the Spanish word for ears is Las Orejas. You could picture a person with Oreos for ears in order to remember this word. This mental picture is not only outlandish, but contains an image which sounds like the word you are trying to memorize!
The Link Method
This brain training technique is great for memorizing large portions of reading like poems or lyrics. To create the first link, group the first two items with each other using a distinct mental image. For the second link, associate the second image with the third. For the third link, associate the third image with the fourth. And so on. Make sure that each link reminds you of the next.
There is no limit to the number of links you can create! For example if you need to memorize a list of grocery items. Let’s’ say you need onions, apples, napkins and soap from the store. You could imagine biting into an onion like an apple, realizing it’s an onion and exchanging it for a real apple. The juice from biting the apple got on your face so you wipe it off with a napkin and wash your face with soap. Creating a story like this adds even more strength to the “link method.”
The Face-Name Method
Stage acts and performers used this method to memorize the names of dozens of people at a time. Start by associating a recognizable feature of the person’s face to the sound of their name. For instance you can remember these names: “long nose Larry, or redhead Rachel.” The next time you see that person, the facial feature will automatically remind you of their name. This also attaches their name to their face making recognition much easier.
Sound frequencies can also improve our memory. Most of us know that music can enhance exercise. Some people concentrate better with the presence of “white noise” in the background. Let me explain why the brain’s electrical activity can be stimulated by various sound frequencies.
Your brain is composed of billions of neurons. These neurons use electricity to communicate with each other and produce brain waves. There is a tremendous amount of electrical activity happening in your brain on any given second. Certain sound frequencies can alter your brainwaves to:
- Create an ideal condition so you can learn new information
- Increase your ability to store information
- Improve retrieval of that information
Wholetones, a musical compilation of sound frequencies, is a fantastic resource for utilizing these brain enhancing frequencies. Specifically, listening to the 417 Hz frequency track brings about focus, clarity, improves productivity and breaks negative cycles. This incredible brain enhancing music can be purchased HERE.
Fat to Enhance Learning and Memory
Diets high in sugar and carbohydrates act like cheap gasoline for the brain and memory. Though the brain has fuel to function, excess sugar slows the brain, impairing focus and memory. The amount of sugar and carbohydrates consumed in the typical American diet is astronomical! We are literally shrinking our brain with what we eat!
On the flip side, consuming healthy fats can preserve and protect the brain. They can also increase focus, concentration and enhance memory. Your brain is composed of around 60% fat. That being the case, it should come as no surprise that our brains need fat to work correctly. Even though the brain accounts for such a small portion of our body weight, it utilizes 20 percent of the body’s metabolic energy.[1]
Eating healthy fat also increases the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in learning and memory.
Two of the most powerful fats for the brain are:
- Omega 3 fatty acids (specifically DHA)
- Medium chain triglycerides (MCT)
DHA
DHA is a powerful substance. It influences memory preservation, speaking ability and motor skills. The more DHA that a brain absorbs, the better the memory neurons interact with one another.[2] But it also contains the ability to reverse memory deficits! DHA deficiency is related to:
- Mental problems like bipolar disorder
- Depression
- Anger
- Hostility
- Memory decline
- Alzheimer’s disease
Though the recommended dosages from DHA vary, a recent study found that 800-900 mg of DHA a day improved learning and memory in healthy elderly adults with age-related cognitive decline.[3] This dosage was taken over a 6 month period.
Many times DHA stores in the brain need to be replenished, so a higher dosage, such as 900 mg can be taken over a period over months. The dose can then be decreased to a maintenance dosage of 300-600 mg a day.
MCT
MCTs contain a shorter carbon chain, which is readily absorbed over long chain triglycerides found in more common fats. MCT oils also have the ability to produce ketones, an alternative source of fuel for the brain. Though the brain typically relies on glucose, ketones provide the brain with energy without the damage caused by surges in glucose.
Consuming 20 mg a day of pure MCT oil or a little over 2 tbsp. of coconut oil, can both treat and prevent memory loss. I add MCT oil to my morning tea. Many people like to add it to coffee as well. It has little to no taste and the benefits can be enjoyed straight off the spoon!
Supplements to Improve Memory
There are many natural supplements that show a lot of promise in preventing and treating memory loss. However, two of these supplements rise above the rest. These two natural memory boosting supplements have no negative side effects. They can also be taken alongside other medications without any interactions. These two natural brain strengthening supplements help increase focus, improve memory and prevent age related brain deterioration.
Phosphatidylserine
Phosphatidylserine is a substance that is naturally present in the brain. Its job is to assist in neurotransmissions, keeping the fluidity of info traveling from one part of the brain to another.
Information traveling in your brain is like a set of railroad tracks. Phosphatidylserine acts as the railroad ties. It holds the track together to keep information flowing quickly and efficiently. As we age, however, these ties begin to breakdown. Information retained is lost, making memories more difficult to retrieve.
The good new is that phosphatidylserine can be taken in supplement form.
Several studies have shown extreme promise with phosphatidylserine supplementation. Memory scores in test patients who took phosphatidylserine increased significantly over those who took a placebo,. [5]
Phosphatidylserine expert and author Professor Parris Kidd calls this natural supplement, “The single best means for conserving memory and other higher brain functions as we age.” These positive effects on memory were found at both a 100 mg and 300 mg daily doses.
Curcumin
Curcumin is the active component found in the spice turmeric. It is a powerful antioxidant with the ability to combat age related memory loss. Curcumin’s antioxidant abilities prevent oxidative damage in the brain. This protects neurons from being killed.
Many studies support the brain protective properties of curcumin. A study published in Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior found that curcumin could specifically improve spatial and learning memory.[6] Curcumin supplements also improved stress-related memory loss in a 2010 study.[7]
Remember, your memory doesn’t have to decline with age. Brain training techniques, healthy fats, and the right natural supplements can keep your memory as sharp as it was in your youth! Don’t wait until you forget to improve your memory! Take steps today to sharpen your mind and regain your quick thinking.
Sources:
[1] http://library.sonoma.edu/blogs/news/brain-food/
[2] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15123336
[3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20434961
[4] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/06/120628174534.htm
[5] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2966935/
[6] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18930076
[7] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3281036/
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