Top 8 Tips to Keep Your Memory Sharp at Any Age

Having certain lifestyle habits and testing your memory is important to keep and maintain a sharp mind and body.

At the same time, it is natural for us to experience moments of forgetfulness when our life gets busy and we are stressed.

Do you tend to forget your partner’s birthday or your parent’s anniversary? Well, these instances of memory loss may be normal and happen to all of us.

It’s true that with age, your memory deteriorates. It becomes harder to remember simple things like names and appointments. These are known as memory lapses, and they can occur to anyone, irrespective of age.

At times, these occurrences can be frustrating and worrying for you and your family members as they start fearing dementia or other neurological illnesses.

In most cases, memory impairment is caused by the natural changes that occur in the structural composition of your brain as you grow older.

As an effect of these changes, it becomes harder to understand or take in new information, which manifests as a slowing of your cognitive responses.

These changes can become incredibly intrusive when you have to learn a new skill or handle multiple responsibilities.

Memory decline can be avoided by some tried and tested methods. Multiple pieces of research have shown that a few mental exercises and dietary changes are the keys to keeping memory sharp and preventing any further memory lapses in the future.

Here, we have listed eight practical tips on how to get a strong memory at any age:

1) Exercise to maintain a healthy mind and body

Exercising regularly, for even a short period, helps to improve both your mental and physical health. It also enables you to sharpen your memory and improve your cognitive recognition skills by boosting blood flow to your brain.

Exercising moderately for just 15 minutes a day leads to improved cognitive performance and memory skills.

Exercise is also known to reduce stress hormones and boost the impact of helpful brain chemicals.

Make exercise a habit by trying out activities like yoga, hiking, or even walking with your dog.

2) Continue reading and learning

According to a Harvard study, a higher education level helps the brain function better in old age.

Stimulating your brain with regular reading and learning exercises helps to maintain individual brain cells and establish communication.

Being mentally active by learning a new skill can stimulate brain cells, just like working at a job. You can also start working on tasks that utilize a skill that you don’t usually use in your daily life or workplace.

Make reading a habit by joining a book club or subscribing to your favorite magazine or local newspaper. Set time aside every day for reading, maybe before bed or after breakfast.

3) Eat healthy

Monitoring your diet according to your body’s needs is extremely important to have a sharp memory.

Cutting back on alcohol and foods with added sugar and refined carbs has been shown to reduce the effects of memory loss and improve overall health.

Food items like nuts, fish, and dark cocoa are linked to a healthy brain and sharp memory.

Additionally, the following food items can also help boost memory:

• Salmon is composed of omega-3 fatty acids, which are the major component of the brain.
• Eggs have several nutrients, such as B6, B12, folate, and choline. Choline is used to make the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which helps in communication between your brain cells.
• Green Tea increases alertness and focus of your mind alongside reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.

4) Get enough sleep

The efficiency of memory dramatically depends upon your sleeping pattern. A well-rested mind proves fruitful in strengthening short-term memory, converting it to long-term memory, and reducing memory-related problems.

Lack of sleep enhances the release of cortisol, a stress hormone that significantly contributes to both physical and mental fatigue.

Besides, sleep plays a vital role in strengthening short-term memories and transforming them into long-lasting ones.

Therefore, start investing more in your sleep now to keep your memory sharp.

As per the recommendations of health professionals, you must get at least seven to nine hours of sleep every night for optimal health.

5) Invest in a hobby

Learning a new skill that you enjoy can stimulate your brain and also increase the quality of your day-to-day routine.

You can pick up new hobbies like gardening, photography, and fishing with your friends, or join a group at the senior center.

By investing in an activity that you enjoy, you can have more gratifying and memorable days.

These activities also improve your mind’s health which also ensures sharp memory.

6) Start writing

Writing increases the retention power of your memory, thus making your memory sharp. It also improves your communication abilities by increasing your brain’s activity.

You can start by writing poems, stories, paragraphs, or whatever you happen to observe that day. It helps to recount your day and express yourself.

This, in turn, boosts your brain’s cell activity and decreases the frequency of memory impairment by leaps and bounds.

7) Listen to music

By listening to music, you help in improving your memory function by making auditory and language centers in your brain more active.

You can listen to music easily on multiple online platforms for free nowadays; you can also turn it into a hobby by learning how to read music or play an instrument.

Learning how to play an instrument increases your brain activity and dramatically boosts your memory.

8) Testing memory

Memory testing is an important tool for assessing cognitive function. While memory decline is a normal part of aging, memory issues can also be a sign of mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease.

Memory tests can help to identify early memory changes and track the progression of memory loss over time.

There are a variety of memory tests that can be used, including the recalling of words, faces, or objects, and the construction of new memories.

Memory testing is a valuable tool for understanding cognitive decline and tracking the progression of memory-related diseases.

How Prime MD Plus can help

If you’re worried about memory issues, Prime MD Plus can help.

Our memory test can help to identify whether there are any problems with your memory.

We also offer diagnostic tests to rule out other possible causes of memory loss, such as Alzheimer’s and other dementias.

Our board-certified geriatrician is a trained medical professional who can help you manage memory issues and improve your quality of life.

You will get a full medical evaluation including getting your blood pressure checked and getting any diagnostics you need.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you.

Conclusion

Out of the numerous ways to retain a sharp memory, we have listed some of the best and easiest tips to achieve a solid memory.

Starting these mindful activities and diet plans early in life is the best way to tackle memory loss and ensure that you have a long and memorable life ahead of you.

Last but not least, always believe in yourself and continue challenging your brain’s prowess with new and unique skills.

If you having memory issues get a further evaluation by a medical professional.

Though there is no single self-administered test or blood test to diagnose the cause of memory loss, your doctor will use several tools that can help to make a diagnosis.

Consult a specialized doctor for any kind of memory issues with Prime MD Plus, where you can connect with a board-certified geriatrician in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to help diagnose and manage any memory problems you may have.

Check out primemdplus.com for more information.