Posts Tagged ‘memory loss’
Keeping older brains young!
Your brain is an organ and just like the heart and lungs, it requires oxygen and exercise in order to operate at an optimum level. You may be too young to give into middle-aged worries like ‘ use it or lose it’ or even to start fretting about Alzheimer’s and other degenerative diseases – however, it’s still important that you focus on keeping your brain in shape.
By regularly engaging in the right types of activities, you can increase your memory, improve your problem-solving skills and boost your creativity. Here are some tips on how to keep your mind active:
Quit smoking
If you are a smoker, quitting is top of the ‘to-do’ list for better mental acuity. This is due to the fact that smokers can add memory loss to the long list of health problems that come from smoking. Smokers may have twice the risk of getting Alzheimer’s disease as do people who have never smoked. Therefore, if the state and health of your mind are so important to you – stop smoking now — it is never too late. If you quit smoking now, you can still reduce your risk of memory loss later in life
Learn a language
Say ‘Ciao!’ to a new language. Learning a new tongue keeps your brain flexible and your mind sharp, helping to reduce the slowing of the thought processes that come with ageing. Attend classes, listen to tapes or seek out friends with whom you can converse in your new chosen language. Instead of watching the same television programs you always do, take in a foreign language movie with subtitles and immerse yourself in your new experience.
Play games
Thanks to an ageing baby-boom generation, there are now plenty of mentally stimulating games. As their name implies, brainteasers and other such puzzles are good exercises for the brain. At sites like at sites like Free Printable Sudoku you’ll find the best sudokus . Always have a crossword book in your briefcase or purse and work on it while you commute, while you wait for an appointment or when you relax on your coffee break. You will improve your cognitive skills and creative thinking as well as your word power and vocabulary. Try also games that force you to strategize like chess, bridge and solitaire.
Learn a new skill
A long-term goal like learning to play a musical instrument stimulates your brain on many levels over an extended period. A skill like learning to dance is great for the brain because it combines music and movement. Make everyday activities harder You can stimulate your brain just by mixing up your daily routine. If you are right handed, brush your teeth with your left hand, shower with your eyes closed — anything that will force you to use more of your senses.
Read
Whether it is a website, a novel or a newspaper, keeping your mind engaged in intellectual activity and expanding your vocabulary are two important ways to keep your brain thinking and working. As an extra exercise, repeat facts to yourself that you want to remember a few times – and try to recall them again later.
Socialize
Your brain is the ultimate party animal and loves social activity. Seek out clubs or other social activities that will surround you with people and have you interacting. New scenery, new topics of conversation and other multi-sensory activities force the brain to literally form new connections, thus increasing memory capacity.
Tags: Health, exercise, nutrition
4 Easy Ways To Manage Sudden Memory Loss
Memory loss is definitely one of the common illnesses suffered when one reaches old age. As such, it is definitely not a surprise when your grandmother is suffering from memory lapses due to Alzheimer’s disease. Now try to imagine if it were you, in your prime, suffering from memory loss. Imagine the shock and horror of your friends when they know that their 35-year-old friend is suffering from a disease that is usually suffered by their grandmothers. So, if you’re looking to prevent that scenario from ever happening, learn these 4 easy ways to manage sudden memory loss.
Memory loss can occur to anyone, regardless of his or her age. The only notable factor with the age related variant is that memory loss that occurred to the older generation are caused by the wear and tear over the decades.
#1 Learn some easy memorizing techniques
If you are having a hard time remembering the list of things in your grocery list, which you left at home, then learn to use easy memorizing techniques. Do not get too worried when you cannot remember the things from the list. This does not confirm that you are suffering from sudden memory loss. Perhaps you’ve used the wrong techniques to memorize your grocery list. The easiest method to memorize long lists is to use images and link them together to form a mini film. For example if you are given a list of items – banana, flowers, and cat, try to gather all these images to form an image of a cat dressed in flowers, eating a banana. See, it makes memorizing far easier, and lots more fun.
#2 Healthy diet
A lot of people tend to dismiss the idea of maintaining a healthy diet for a healthy mind. The main thing you have to remember is to be constant with your dieting efforts. Don’t scoff at this particular tip; these healthy dieting tips can really help you recover from severe memory loss. Food like blueberries, spinach and broccoli are extremely good for your memory.
#3 Mind games
Contrary to popular belief, mind games can be good for adults as they are for kids. Even mature adults like you and me should in fact be encouraged to play mind games. Mind games are especially good if you are looking for a fun way to give your memory a boost. Puzzles and such are also ideal as it provides immense amount of thinking and some strategizing too. This helps to work the brain and hence allowing it to get used to the ability to think and process information fast.
#4 Organize
Believe it or not, a little organization in your life will definitely help you tons. You might not be suffering from severe memory loss but because of the mess and clutter, you feel that your mind is not working good enough to retrieve information just as difficult as it is for you to find things amidst the clutter around you. Too much clutter also confuses the brain and hence your memory would not work as well when you see things strewn over the place at all times.
Do try on these tips and see drastic improvement with your memory. Good luck!
Tags: Health, exercise, nutrition
