Dec 07, 2017

6 Tips to Help You Remember Everyday Things

Many people forget that memory is like a muscle – it needs to be trained to preserve its strength.

It’s normal to experience memory lapses over time, as the part of your brain that creates and retrieves memories – the hippocampus – loses 5% of nerve cells every decade.

For many seniors, it is beyond frustrating when they can’t remember why they walked into a room, or why they are mixing up their grandchildren’s names.

Dr Ryan Harvey from House Call Doctor says, “The sooner you start training your memory, the longer it will last as you grow older”.

Studies show that brain training can increase efficiency in performing everyday tasks and improves memory in older adults.

To train yourself to remember everyday things, Dr Harvey suggests six tips for older generations.

  1. Test your recall

“Make a list — of grocery items, things to do, or anything else that comes to mind — and memorize it”, says Dr Harvey. An hour or so later, see how many items you can recall. Make items on the list as challenging as possible for the greatest mental stimulation.

  1. Get a little musical

“Learn to play a musical instrument or join your local choir”, says Dr Harvey. Research shows learning something new and complex over a longer period of time is ideal for the aging mind.

  1. Take a Cooking Class

“Learn how to cook a new cuisine with friends or by yourself”, says Dr Harvey. Cooking uses a number of senses, smell, touch, sight, and taste, which all involve different parts of the brain.

  1. Create Word Pictures

Visualize the spelling of a word in your head, then try and think of any other words that begin (or end) with the same two letters.

  1. 4-Details Observation Exercise

Memorise four details about every person you encounter during the day. For example, let’s say someone is wearing a green sweater, blue hat, black belt and green shoes. The goal is to observe the details first and then recall them later. “The 4-details observation exercise is great with passive memory training”, says Dr Harvey.

  1. The Three Basics – Eat, Exercise and Sleep.

This is a no-brainer. For your mind to have the best advantage in training its memory, you need to have the right nutrition, consistent exercise and high-quality sleep.

“Omega 3 and Antioxidants are a great nutritional combination for your mind to have the power it needs to train your memory”, says Dr Harvey. Find out what foods have Omega 3 and Antioxidants in them.

Exercising at your own level, whether it’s yoga, aerobics or walking, “increases the amount of oxygen to your brain and reduces the risk of developing disorders that lead to memory loss, such as cardiovascular disease,” says Dr Harvey.

The Sleep Foundation recommends older adults need a range of 7-8 hours sleep. Dr Harvey says, “Sleep lets our brain cement the new information we’re taking in for a better recall later on”. Missing even a few hours can significantly affect your memory, creativity, problem solving abilities and critical thinking.

What do you have to say? Comment, share and like below.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Buyer Beware…The Hidden (and not so hidden) Traps of Community Aged Care

The 27th of February 2017 saw the implementation of probably what is the most significant change to hit the community aged care sector since the Home and Community Care Act was first introduced in 1986. Back in 1986, the majority of community aged care was offered by service providers auspiced by frequently church based, not-for-profit organisations... Read More

Aged Care Apology

We look forward to an apology from those most vocal in effectively denigrating ALL aged care providers based on what happened at Oakden. – Grandstanding Politicians of all persuasions – Self-serving media outlets and ignorant commentators – Journalist – South Australian Ministers for Health (past and present) The Aged Care Industry, providers across Australia, look forward to a public apology for... Read More

Why are older people more prone to developing urinary infections?

Urinary tract infections are a common problem for older people. While most women will develop a UTI at some time during their adult lives, men over the age of 50 are also particularly at risk.   UTIs account for 1.2 per cent of all GP consultations. In Australia, three were more than 73,000 hospitalisations for... Read More
Advertisement