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Turn Up the Lights
Another memory-stimulating technique: Make the lights brighter in your house. A study at Michigan State University shows that sitting too long in a dimly lit room can shift your brain’s structure and impede your learning abilities. In these lab tests, the Michigan researchers discovered that dim light can compromise the memory capacity of the brain’s hippocampus, a key brain region necessary for learning. Bright light enhances memory. According to researcher Joel Soler, dim light reduces the brain’s production of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which stimulates better connections among the neurons in the hippocampus. As you may remember from previous issues, experts see BDNF as one of the body’s most important chemicals for brain health. "Since there are fewer connections being made, this results in diminished learning and memory performance that is dependent upon the hippocampus," Soler says. "In other words, dim lights are producing dimwits." Please note as well that exercise is the most effective way to raise BDNF levels.Taking it Backwards
One of the stranger ways I’ve heard for improving memory is to walk backwards. That’s right – walk backwards. According to a study in England, walking in reverse can help you remember where you put your car keys or where you parked at the mall. That doesn’t just mean retracing your steps. The study shows that actually moving backwards (while being careful not to trip and fall!) can help bring you back in time – mentally speaking -- and thereby help you remember a past event. The researchers aren’t sure why this works, but their investigation indicates it improves recall.2 The theory is that walking backwards somehow gives your neurons a stronger wake-up call to better remember something you are trying to bring to mind. Apparently you don’t have to walk that far – anywhere from about six to a dozen backward steps should help. The researchers say the memory boost lasts for about ten minutes after you’re done with your backwards walk. Other simple ways to improve memory include:- Take vitamin D: A study at Rutgers shows that taking 2,000 IUs of vitamin D daily can help memory. But, according to this research, it also slows reaction time – which means it might make older people more liable to falling.3 I’d file this one under “needs more study,” but since most of us supplement with vitamin D anyway, we’re already reaping whatever benefit there may be.
- Take curcumin: When researchers at UCLA asked people with mild memory loss aged 50 to 84 years-of-age to take 90 mg of curcumin twice a day for 18 months, the result was improved memory and mood.4
- Drink some water: A review study at Georgia tech demonstrates that your attention span, coordination and adeptness at dealing with complex problems all suffer when you let yourself get dehydrated. As you get more dehydrated, your memory worsens and you’re liable to make more mistakes.5 And please be aware: dehydration is a common problem. A great many people don’t drink enough water.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28969489
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30368065/
- https://academic.oup.com/biomedgerontology/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/gerona/glz041/5320009?redirectedFrom=fulltext
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29246725
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29933347