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Thursday, November 18, 2010

How to improve your memory

Memory is the ability of remembering the things and facts and recall them back whenever required. In simple words, memory is the mental activity of recalling the information that you have experienced or learned in the past.

We can say that memory is the process of 1)encoding, 2)storing and 3)retrieving information that we collected in the past. Memory gets affected when we fail to do any of these three.

Surveys have indicated that the first memories are formed at the age of four. Just like health and beauty, a good memory is a gift of God and we can improve the memory only by natural way. Here are some tips to improve memory.

  • Proper nutrition is very important to improve the memory.  You should have better nutrients in your diet which is very much essential for a good memory.
  • Have enough sleep.   If you do not sleep for the correct time, this may interfere with memory.  To have good memory power,  you should always have a sound sleep and that too for correct number of hours. Normally students sleep less because of their busy schedules with school activities, and extra curricular activities.  If you have a problem of sleeplessness, then take 10 to 15 minutes of meditation to energise yourself.
  • Getting enough sleep. Lack of sleep can interfere with memory. . Today, students have very busy schedules with school activities, sports and extra curricular activities that the only time left for studying is late at night or they end up cramming for tests and finals at the last minute.
  • Rehearsal is another thing to improve memoryThe basic principle behind rehearsal is to repeat something over and over again until we know it. Regular brain exercises:  Regular brain exercises like doing maths with out calculator, attempting various puzzles, baffles etc. will sharpen your memory.
  • Regular physical exercise: Regular physical exercise will improve the blood supply to your brain thereby improving the memory power.  
  • Managing Stress: Cortisol, the stress hormone will damage the hippocampus which plays an important part in processing information in your memory.  Stress makes it difficult to concentrate.  
  • Drink plenty of water : Toxins can have an adverse effect on memory. Drinking plenty of water helps to flush away toxins from your body.
  • New research indicates that walking six miles to nine miles every week can prevent brain shrinkage and memory loss.  
  • Do not take alcohol. Over medication can lead to memory problems as we get older.