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Memory Improvement
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Last Updated: Sep 19th, 2006 - 12:42:14
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High Performance Memory
By Pat Wyman, M.A. Jan 23, 2006, 15:43 |
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It’s
something we all want more of – a great memory. Why? Because it makes our
lives easier and even increases our intelligence. We perform better in
school, better in life and think faster on the job. Everyday facts stay at
our fingertips and learning new things becomes a snap! Even as adults, we
know that activating our memory and constantly learning new things may very
well prevent age related diseases such as dementia and
Alzheimer’s. So the question is - how do we do it? What does neuroscience say about the possibility of creating a designer brain – one that has an excellent memory? Can we even raise smarter children with great memories? A resounding YES – to all of the above!
Keys to A Great Memory
Toolkit
Let’s take a look at what science has learned about memory. After each item, you’ll find tips on how to create an extraordinary memory.
When you exercise the
brain, you release natural growth factors called neurotrophins, which in turn
enhance the brain’s level of fitness. This is a great little book and the
first one of its kind scientifically based on the adult brain’s ability to
produce its own natural brain food. You can find it for about.
“Through special brain exercises, the authors say, (Jan. 1, 2000 Newsweek article) we hope to able to untangle our circuits to relieve depression, cure learning disabilities, rehabilitate stroke victims, etc. Stimulating the senses to form new connections can lead to a stronger ability to learn new things and retrieve what we already know from memory”.
Neuroscientists will
learn how to use “directed neuroplasticity to determine what specific inputs
will change the brain in helpful ways. For example, right now we can see on
brain scans that brains capable of logic are physically different from brains
that are not. The question remains – how do we change the input to help a
person become more logical”?
Science has now proven that the brain never stops changing and adjusting. This flexibility can even help maintain language processing even in the face of severe obstacles. Researchers once thought that only young brains were plastic and flexible – now we know that the brain retains its plasticity throughout life. This means that even people with specific disabilities and challenges like dyslexia,reading problems and language processing problems can all respond to interventions that modify brain networks. Reading programs that alter neural circuits like Fast ForWard are already improving reading ability by two years during a 6 to 8 week training session. The implications of brain plasticity are almost limitless – it will mean that schools can deliver education based on neuroscience principles and that learning isn’t only in textbooks. Coaches may soon learn to use plasticity to create better athletes by improving brain circuitry and trainers will no longer need to rely on hit-or miss training for anything! Peak performance is a reality.
Researchers have found
that stress hormones like corticosterone, similar to cortisol, can even block
retrieval of information stored in the brain. Learners in a state of fear or
threat not only have a harder time learning, their immune system becomes
depressed and their learning slows down. The good news – when you’re calm,
your memory returns.
Also, before an
examination, familiarize yourself with the location where you’ll take it.
Knowing the room well, or even studying in the room where the exam will be
relaxes you and increases your odds of better recall when you take the test.
The mayonnaise you put
on your sandwich and the type of dressing you put on your salad may have an
impact on your stress levels, moods, impulsiveness and even your ability to
learn.
(Skip all trans-fatty acids like those found in margarine and most packaged goods. Read the labels - if you see the words hydrogentated or partially hydrogenated, pass them by!) Read on to find out how essential fatty acids, the good omega-3’s, affect everyone’s brain, including your baby’s. Essential fatty acids are components of every cell and are needed for many functions in the body. In fact, one reason the type of fat you eat has such an important effect on your mind, is that your brain is more than 60% fat (I guess that makes us all true fat heads)! This is not the same type of fat you see around your belly but structural fat, the type that forms your cell membranes and plays such an important role in how your cells function. Essential fatty acids are found in cold water fish like salmon, fish oils (sometimes hard to digest) and flax seeds and flax oil. The reason these fats are called essential is because they cannot be made by the body. They must be supplied by your diet! If you're like most people, more than likely you won't be able to eat enough of the foods that contain them to get what you need. So, you might want to consider supplementation! As far back as 1930, researchers found that if an animal did not get enough essential fatty acids in the die t, it could cause symptoms such as poor reproduction, lowered immunity, rough, dry skin (like the kind you might notice as little bumps on the back of your arms) and slow growth, among others. The list of benefits from essential fatty acids is enormous :
·
Helps to eradicate
plaque from the artery walls
·
Lowers blood pressure
·
Lowers triglyceride
levels
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Reduces inflammation
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Helps construct body
membranes
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Helps strengthen cell
and capillary structures and increases fluidity of cell membranes preventing
stiffness and deterioration
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Prolongs blood
clotting time, helping wounds to heal
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Helps the body
manufacture hemoglobin, the compound in the blood that provides oxygen to the
cells from the lungs
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Removes excess
cholesterol from the blood
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Nourishes hair, skin
and nails
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Increases the rate at
which the body burns fat
·
Helps maintain proper
body temperature
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Crucial for proper
visual function
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Helps the learning
process (a Purdue study found that boys with ADHD were deficient in Omega 3
essential fatty acids)
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Play a significant
role in maintaining normal mood and behavior
·
Helps prevent
Alzheimer’s (those with Alzheimer’s are twice as apt to have low DHA levels;
those with low blood DHA had a 67% greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s in
the next ten years according to a study done at Tufts University)
·
Many studies on
essential fatty acids show a significantly positive effect on memory and
learning. Refer to Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D. books and articles)
·
Helps you think faster
and concentrate better, speeds up brain waves.
More science
about omega-3 oils: DHA in formula boosts children’s intelligence – According to a study funded by the National
Institute of Child Health and Human Development, researchers at the Retina
Foundation of the Southwest in Dallas, Texas, writing in the March issue
Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology demonstrated how DHA, (the good
fat) improved children’s intelligence as well as visual acuity.
DHA, docosahexaenoic acid
and AA are fatty acids present in human breast milk and prior to birth are
supplied through the placenta to the developing fetus. Both DHA and AA are
believed to play a role in the development of the nervous system. Fifty six
18 month old children were divided into three groups. One group received
formula containing only DHA, while another received DHA and AA. The control
group received a commercial formula without either. All three groups were
enrolled in the study within five days of their birth and received on of the
three formula types for 17 weeks.
Overall intelligence
and motor skills were tested using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development,
2nd edition (BSIDII). No differences were seen on motor skills, but the
children differed significantly on Mental Development Index of the test. It
measures memory, ability to solve simple problems and language capabilities.
Children in the control group received an average MDI score of 98, slightly
below the national average for U.S. Children of 100. The DHA group received
an average scores o 102.4 and the DHA plus AA group received an average score
of 105! You can read more about this study at www.nichd.nih.gov and it’s
interesting to note that European baby formulas have essential fatty acids in
them and the U.S. is only just now deciding whether to include them in their
baby formulas.
Apparently, according
to Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D., there is quite a link between omega 3 fatty
acids and learning. According to a 1996 study done at Purdue University, 100
boys between the ages of six and twelve were studied. Those who had the
highest levels of omega 3 fatty acids had the fewest learning problems.
According to
information in the book, The Omega Plan by Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D.,
president of The Center for Genetics, Nutrition and Health in Washington,
D.C. and former NIH chair for the Nutrition Coordinating Committee, the
“process of learning and remembering involves the transmission of various
chemicals from one nerve ending to another. These chemicals are stored in
tiny packages called ‘synaptic vesicles.’
The more synaptic vesicles in a nerve ending, the more chemicals that can be transmitted. Enriching the diet of rats with omega-3 oils resulted in considerable more vesicles in their nerve endings as well as better performance on all their tests. This study suggests there may be a direct connection between the amount of omega-e fatty acids in your diet, the number of synaptic vesicles in your neurons, and your ability to learn.”
P.S. There's a
wonderful side benefit to taking EFA's - If you happen to want to lose
weight, you can take them about 20 minutes before you eat and your
carbohydrate cravings will end! Remember, carbs turn to sugar, and sugar
turns to fat. Taking the balanced EFA's before eating is the quickest, safest
and most scientific way to lose weight safely we've ever seen!
Ginkgo, says Julian
Whitaker, M.D., works by combating free radicals and promoting circulation to
the tiny capillaries of the brain. A high quality extract will be
standardized to contain 24 percent ginkgo flavone glycosides and 6 percent
terpene lactones. But, he cautions, be patient. It can take up to three
months to work.
Also, memory that has
an emotional component or even a smell connected with it is even more
powerful and easier to retrieve. (Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence).
Since learning and
memory occur when neurons communicate with each other it’s a lot easier to
access the memory you want when you intentionally store that memory in
several different ways. That way you’ll be able to use various triggers to
retrieve any memory.
According to brain
researchers, the process of memory is far more important than the location
since the brain doesn’t just store memory in one location. The point: When you
activate a single memory system or memory pathway, you might appear to forget
what you know. However, activating multiple memory systems or pathways
through a wide variety of activities increases your ability to retrieve what
you want. It’s a lot like going to a filing cabinet for a single file on a
certain subject. If you can’t remember where you filed it, but knew you have
made several copies and filed them under different headings, you’d be more
apt to find the file more quickly.
Here are five types of
memory or storage and retrieval systems:
According to Tom, the
short term information gets downloaded into long term memories at night
during sleep. Semantic memory holds the information learned from words. This
type of memory seems to be a difficult one to use for learning because it
takes so many repetitions to cement it into the pathway. It also has to be
sorted and stimulated by associations, comparisons and similarities to be
effective. This type of memory can easily fail us in many ways.
The reason episodic
memory is so important to understand is because children and adults who learn
information in one location and are shuttled off to an unfamiliar location to
be tested on that information consistently underperform. According to
Sprenger, “The content of the room becomes part of the context of the
memory.” So, when you know you will be tested in another location from the
one you learned the information in, try and visit the testing room often,
visualizing the information you want to remember in various locations around
the room.
·
Automatic Memory is known as conditioned response memory. This
type of memory is automatically triggered by certain stimuli and is located
in the cerebellum. You might hear the first few words of a song and start
singing it, remember your multiplication tables or the alphabet here.
Your ability to read
but not comprehend is in automatic memory. According to Jensen and Sprenger,
“Your automatic memory may cause other memory lanes to open.” When you hear a
certain song on the radio you may remember the words to it and also where you
were when you first heard it (episodic) and what events were going on when
you first heard it. You may even recall something procedural, like driving
your car when the song was playing and better yet, some factual, semantic
memory lanes may open up too.
Further, hearing the
song may even cause you to have an emotional reaction similar to the one you
had when you first heard the song. Obviously, automatic memory has great
implications for enhancing recall through strong associa tions. The more
memory lanes you can connect with what you are learning, the easier it will
be to recall that learning.
Emotional memory is
opened through the amygdala, located next to the hippocampus. While the
hippocampus files factual information, the amygdala stores emotional
information. The fear response is stored here as is happiness, sadness and a
host of other emotions. When learners are feeling threatened, learning
abilities plummet. Stress hormones may simply block access to the facts.
Remember, your brain
will always give priority to emotional memory. While you have facts stored in
your semantic memory, how you feel about those facts may affect your ability
to recall them. That is why learning is so much more effective and efficient
when the learner is relaxed and associating things like humor to the
learning. Access to learning is easier in the future when it is connected to
something funny.
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