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Boosting Your Memory Boosting Your Memory

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By Kathleen Bowers
Published: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 - 17:18

In these days of phone numbers plugged into cell phones, instant information from anywhere in the world available at the click of a mouse, and cars equipped with navigation systems that take us wherever we need to go – who needs to memorize? The fact is, we all do. Either we use it, or we lose it: memory is like a muscle. Exercising our memory strengthens our brain power, and keeps us mentally young and fit. Fail to exercise your memory, and it begins to flag – beginning not in the golden years, but according to researchers, somewhere around age 25!

Think memory isn’t all that important? It turns out that memory is intricately linked to intelligence and creativity. You won’t go far without it. In Mozart’s Brain and the Fighter Pilot, Richard Restak MD, puts it this way: “An increased memory leads to easier, quicker accessing of information, as well as greater linkages and associations.” Dr. Restak also points out the close association between memory and identity: “Basically, you are what you can remember. Your identity depends on the people, places, and things you can recall. To prove this, you have only to encounter a person suffering from Alzheimer’s or any other disease that destroys memory.”

So, how do you hold on to your brainpower? How can you not only preserve, but boost, your memory? Read on…

Crossword Puzzles Aid the Memory Crossword Puzzles Aid the Memory

1. In elementary school, children are required to memorize spelling words and times tables – exercises that are good for not just having this information at hand when you need it but also for the very skill of memorization. Well, adults can build (or re-build) memory skills too. Here’s an exercise from brain expert Dr. Restak: “Write down a series of numbers selected at random. Start with strings of five digits and work up to nine digits. Don’t think about the numbers; just quickly write whatever comes to mind. Now, without looking at the numbers, repeat the string of digits either aloud or in your mind at a rate of one per second. When you can repeat nine digits without error, increase the number of digits until you reach your personal outer limit. At this point, return to five digit strings, and recite the numbers backward…. Next, perform the exercise with words instead of numbers.”

2. Another exercise from Dr. Restak involves slightly longer-term memory. He suggests writing down four unrelated words, studying them for 15 seconds, and them putting the list away for five minutes while you carry out some unrelated activity. See how many you can remember. When you’ve mastered this, increase the time to ten minutes, 15 minutes, 20 minutes, and a half hour. Gradually increase the list from four words to ten words. Yet another exercise from Dr. Restak involves visual memory. After watching a television show, see how many scenes you can replay in your mind.
Challenge the Brain to Sharpen Memory Challenge the Brain to Sharpen Memory

3. In his new book, Chasing Life, Dr. Sanjay Gupta says that exercising the brain has been shown to preserve “neuroplasticity” – the ability of the brain to learn new things quickly and easily. The more we learn, the more mental capacity we’ll have. However, to accomplish this “we need to keep challenging ourselves in new ways…. Don’t do the same type of mental exercise every day…. If you have mastered the crossword puzzle in your local newspaper, try Sudoku. As you master one level of difficulty, go to the next level…. Exercising the brain is like exercising the body. If you went to the gym, you would not use only the bench press every day, nor would you use the same amount of weight every day. You would use different machines, and, if you were really working at it, you would probably start lifting heavier weights. You want to build strength in your brain the same way. Make sure you are exercising your brain every day – in new and challenging ways.” Speaking of which, have you ever tried the Mensa Award-winning game, Set?

4. University of Southern California researcher Elizabeth Zelinksi confirms that such mental exertion really does work to improve memory skills. In a presentation to the Gerontological Society of America in November, 2007, she reported on a study of 524 healthy seniors who worked an hour per day for eight weeks on a computer-based learning program called Brain Fitness 2.0 from Posit Science. She later told Time magazine that “the gains were equivalent to turning back the clock ten years.”

Exercise Benefits Memory Exercise Benefits Memory

5. Studies of mice suggest that even lost memories are recoverable. In one experiment, critical neurons were damaged so that the mice no longer recognized a particular danger. They were then divided into two groups: one group was put into an “enriched environment” with lots of new toys to engage learning, and the other received an experimental drug that helps rebuild brain synapses. Both groups soon recovered their previous fear of the previous danger – suggesting that lost memory was recovered.

6. To boost memory and brain power, don’t just sit in your armchair doing mental exercises though. Physical exercise counts too! Time magazine reports that Dr. Barry Gordon, founder of the memory clinic at Johns Hopkins, is conducting research that has “shed new light” on the benefits of physical activity on memory. His work shows that exercise increases levels of a brain chemical called BDNF, which promotes the growth of new synapses. BDNF appears to be so important that one scientist has dubbed it “brain fertilizer.”

Ginkgo Biloba Ginkgo Biloba

7. A Columbia University study demonstrated that one hour of aerobic exercise four days a week for three months can actually lead to new neurons in the hippocampus, the region of the brain responsible for memory. Lead investigator and neurologist Scott Small, reports: “My lab members are dusting off their sneakers!”

8. The leaves of Gingko biloba, a tree so ancient it may be the world’s oldest living species, is known for improving blood flow, and it’s thought to improve memory. It may be worth a try – especially given the fact that blood flow is such a critical component for optimal brain function and memory.

Memory-Boosting Medication On The Way? Memory-Boosting Medication On The Way?

9. Aluminum has been associated with memory loss and premature senility. It is found in cookware, deodorants, antacids, public water supplies, and toothpaste. The younger you are, the more you have to gain by getting rid of these items.

10. Scientists are just beginning to uncover the secrets of the brain. Stay tuned. New memory-enhancement drugs are making it to the clinical trial stage these days, including some nicotine-related medications. According to a December 2007 Time magazine report, “Researchers have long known that it’s easier to form memories when you’re paying greater attention – and as smokers will attest, nicotine helps…. Memory Pharmaceuticals Corp. has devised a compound that selectively tickles nicotine receptors in the brain. ‘You get rid of the bad effects and retain the good,’ says chief scientific officer Davis Lowe. Last month the company announced the results of a small trial in 80 Alzheimer’s patients who performed better on tests of long-term memory, working memory and speed of cognitive processing after taking the pill once a day for eight weeks.”