Hacks

9 Simple & Effective Ways To Improve Your Memory

2019-08-20 , 12:00 am

Last Updated on 2021-10-02 , 10:39 am

Nowadays, we always complain about having a bad memory, either blaming it on age or some other reasons.

Want some easy ways to improve it? Here’s how!

1. Brain Foods

Remember your mum always telling you to eat your fish because it can improve your memory? Turns out she wasn’t lying. The omega-3 that can be found in many types of fishes can help to improve your memory, and even fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants that protect your brain cells.

2. Exercise

Yes, exercise exercise exercise! Exercise not only improves your overall physical health but also has the benefit of boosting your memory, helping you function better and store memories better as well!

In fact, according to The Guardian, just ten minutes of exercising per day can improve your memory.

3. Get sufficient sleep

When you sleep, your brain is still at work categorizing and shifting your memories around, reorganizing them and helping them be retained better. Here’s an excuse to grab that short nap!

4. Chewing Gum

According to a study, the act of chewing gum actually helps to boost short-term memory and makes you stay more focused on a task.

There’s a lot of speculations but here are the three main theories:

The act of chewing increases the activity in the hippocampus, an area in the brain that’s important for memory
Insulin receptors in the hippocampus may be involved
Chewing increases heart rate, thereby increasing oxygen to the brain.

Whichever it is, it seems like it helps so go ahead and chew some Singapore chewing gum.

5. Keep stress under control

While a little stress is good for productivity, intense stress actually interfere in the memory process and prevent it from being encoded in the first place.

In short, control your stress and you’ll find yourself thinking clearer and better.

6. Maintain a healthy iron level

Brain function is impacted by iron levels in your body, and a deficiency would affect your ability to memorize things or focus on the task. Remember to keep the iron levels in your body at a healthy level.

Recommended food for iron:

Beans and lentils.
Tofu.
Baked potatoes.
Cashews.
Dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach.
Fortified breakfast cereals.
Whole-grain and enriched bread.

7. Clench your fists

As unbelievable as this sounds, a study has shown that clenching your right fist before memorizing things and then clenching your left before recalling it actually helps the process.

This is an odd idea that is attributed to how fist-clenching activates different parts of the brains and helps with memory processing.

8. Actually, focus on a task

Multi-tasking can end up very confusing since we have to juggle many things at once, so the simple act of taking tasks one at a time will help us improve our memory and focus on the task.

Imagine trying to memorize Chinese words and math equations at the same time!

9. Drink red wine

Red wine (in moderation) contains a component that improves blood flow and helps to boost memory.

If you’re underage or not a fan of alcohol, this same component is also present in drinks such as grape juice and in fresh fruits such as berries.

Featured Image: Anuchit kamsongmueang / Shutterstock.com (Image is for illustration purpose only)