7 Rules to Boost Your Memory

Did you know?

If you’re over 40, your brain is shrinking. The average human brain shrinks by approximately 5% per decade after the age of 40. This can really impact your memory and ability to focus.

Also, in 2020, 54 million people worldwide had Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, and that number is expected to grow.

You are not helpless. Serious mental decline doesn’t have to be an inevitable part of aging.
Here are seven rules from a neuroscience researcher to help you keep your brain sharp and fight off dementia. For more details on each of these, see this article by Dr. Marc Milstein.

1. Keep blood pressure and cholesterol levels in check.
High blood pressure can weaken your heart muscle, and is one of the leading causes of strokes. Ideally, your blood pressure should be no higher than 120/80.

2. Manage sugar levels.
Sugar isn’t the enemy, excess sugar is. It’s easy for grams of sugar to add up, even if you think you’re being careful. Watch the ingredients list.

3. Get quality sleep.
For most people, a healthy brain needs somewhere between seven and nine hours of sleep a night.

•Keep a consistent bedtime and wake-up schedule.

•Turn off devices one hour before bedtime.

•Do something relaxing before bedtime, like listening to soft music or doing mindful breathing exercises.

•Go outside and get in natural sunlight as soon as you can after waking up.

4. Eat a nutritious diet.
One way to keep things simple is to have most, if not all, of these items in my grocery cart:

•Fatty fish like salmon

•Avocados

•Nuts

•Blueberries

•Cruciferous veggies like arugula, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and collard greens

When food shopping, I ask myself three questions to help determine whether something is good for my brain:

•Will it spoil? In many cases, perishable is a good thing. The additives and preservatives that keep food from spoiling wreak havoc on your gut bacteria.

•Are there tons of ingredients in that packaged food? And for that matter, can you pronounce the ingredients? Or does it look like the makings of a chemical experiment? Also avoid anything where sugar is one of the first few ingredients.

•Do you see a rainbow on your plate? The chemicals that give fruits and vegetables their vibrant colors help boost brain health.

5. Don’t smoke (and avoid secondhand and thirdhand smoke).
Smokers have a 30% higher risk of developing dementia than non-smokers. They also put those around them at risk:

Secondhand smoke contains 7,000 chemicals — and at least 70 of them can cause cancer.

Then there’s thirdhand smoke, which is not actually smoke. It’s the residue of cigarette smoke that creates the telltale smell on clothing or in a room. That residue alone can emit chemicals that are toxic to the brain.

6. Make social connections.
In a recent study, people over the age of 55 who regularly participated in dinner parties or other social events had a lower risk of losing their memory. But it wasn’t because of what they ate, it was the effect of the repeated social connection.

To lessen isolation and loneliness, you can also boost brain chemicals like serotonin and endorphins by performing small acts of kindness:

•Wish others well or check in with somebody.

•Give a compliment without expecting anything in return.

•Make a phone call to somebody you don’t usually reach out to.

7. Continuously learn new skills.
Maintaining a strong memory is not all about brain games like Sudoku, Wordle and crossword puzzles.

Learning skills and acquiring information are much more effective ways to make new connections in the brain. The more connections you make, the more likely you are to retain and even enhance your memory.

When you think about learning something new, approach it the way you would with fitness training. You want to work out different muscles on different days. The same goes for the brain.

Over the course of this week, try cross-training your brain by mixing mental activities (learning a new language or reading a book) and physical learning activities (playing tennis or soccer) .

The above information comes from Marc Milstein, PhD. He is a brain health expert and author of “The Age-Proof Brain: New Strategies to Improve Memory, Protect Immunity, and Fight Off Dementia.” He earned both his PhD in Biological Chemistry and his Bachelor of Science in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology