You have started to notice that you can't remember where you put the keys or forgot an important meeting once again, you can't focus on important matters and you are always distracted, you don't remember new material well or you don't remember past materiallately? If so, then it is worth thinking about how to improve memory and attention in adults and regain their former state.
The first thing that comes to mind is to create a diary, which is an online calendar with reminders so as not to miss important events and appointments. But what to do with the information that should be remembered and transferred into long-term memory? !
Unfortunately, things are not that simple. Despite the variety of choices, tablet formulations, and variety of supplements and medications, there is currently not much scientific evidence that they actually improve brain activity and thought processes. And testing a $ 50 drug that promises to strengthen neural connections in the brain in just a couple of weeks doesn't sound very appealing, especially if the appointment was taken by a doctor as part of a promotion.
In the 21st century of information technology, to cover the entire volume or even prepare for an exam, you don't just need to spend time. The crux of the problem is often just poor memorization, a weakened memory and a wrong approach to the learning process.
Fortunately, there are scientifically proven effective methods to improve memory and ways to improve brain function, both short and long-term at home, and also to make exam preparation easier. Below we will consider each of them separately.
Try meditation to improve concentration
Attention is one of the main components of memory. In order for the data to move from short-term memory to long-term memory, you need to focus on this particular piece of material. Try to do important things away from distractions like television, music, phones, chat, and other entertainment.
This is not always easy to do, especially if you are surrounded by noisy neighbors or children. Try to make time for yourself when no one is in the way so you can focus on your work.
Memory and concentration are located in approximately the same region of the brain. It has been shown that with increased concentration of attention through meditation, it leads to an improvement in the performance of the brain and the remembering process of an adult.
Meditation helps improve and develop working memory, which temporarily stores the data you need throughout the day. Simply put, at any given time there are 7 pieces of information in the brain, when a new part arrives, it replaces the old one, which is or is not recorded in long-term memory. Meditation helps you get that information you need faster in a given period of time.
How long it will take to see positive results is not known for sure. Generally, this can take 2 to 8 weeks.
Perhaps the calming effect of meditation improves the ability to overcome mental noise (distractions) and focus on what you need to know at one point or another.
Here are some more powerful ways:
- Turn off all notifications while learning.
- Try to isolate yourself from the people you know while studying. Go to the library or a cafe where you won't be disturbed.
- Work on only one topic at a time, avoid multitasking and frequent switching to other material.
Do not cram
In order to properly process this or that information, it should be studied in different approaches. Studies have shown that those who regularly learn a particular material in parts memorize it much better than those who learn it all at once.
Structure and organize your data
Researchers found that information is organized in the brain in interconnected "clusters". This ability of the brain to structure data can be used in everyday life. Try combining similar ideas and terms together, or draft notes or group material from different books, this will make it easier to remember and highlight the information you want from different sources.
Use mnemonics and abbreviations
Mnemonics is a memorization technique often used by students to retrieve data from the brain faster. In other words, it's an easy way to remember complex information. For example, you can associate a term you want to remember by associating it with a topic you know. The best mnemonics are those associated with positive images or humor. You can come up with a rhyme, song, or joke to remember a specific segment of the material.
Acronyms are the most commonly used technique for associative storage of short lists or sequences.
In everyday life, we are already so used to acronyms that we don't even notice them and don't think about the words they're made of.
As you learn new knowledge, you can create your own abbreviations.
Analyze the material in detail and repeat what you went through
To remember information, you must first make it understandable to the brain, and then repeat everything learned again, then the information will surely fall into long-term memory. For example, read the definition of a key term, study the definition of that term, and then read a more detailed description of the meaning of the term. By repeating this process several times, you will likely find that you remember the term easier and faster over time.
To review the material studied, it is also advisable to divide it into three categories of difficulty. For each of them, select the amount of time you spend and the days per week.
Review the material, if you remember it well, then repeat only once a week.
If you have difficulty reproducing information, read it again after a few hours or every other day.
And if you don't remember anything, study the material again for 10 minutes. After the whole cycle repeats itself, re-order the information based on how you remember it and allocate your time for repetition and filling in the gaps.
View information
Viewing information often helps people remember material better because some people have greater visual perception. For example, pay attention to pictures, charts and tables in the same tutorials. You can create your own diagrams, diagrams and drawings, use marginal notes or colored markers to remember significant points and quickly find what you need.
Links new information to known information
When looking for unfamiliar material, take some time to think about how this information relates to what you already know. Having found this relationship, it will be easier for you to remember recently received information.
Read aloud
Research shows that reading aloud makes it easier to remember information. Teachers also support this concept and put it into practice when they ask their students to teach new material to their classmates. You can also use this approach and study new material with your friend.
Spend more time on complex information
What information is easier to remember at the beginning or at the end? The researchers found that the order in which the data is examined plays a significant role in how quickly the brain is sampled and emitted. And the material is best remembered at the beginning of the book and at the end.
The information in the center is often lost, but this problem can be solved by repeating it several times. Another strategy is to try to rephrase what you have learned in your own words to make it easier to remember.
Change the usual environment
Another great way to improve memorization is to change the learning environment. Change the classroom location or time of day to study the material. By adding an element of novelty to your learning activities, you can improve the efficiency of the effort made and the storage of information.
Remember before writing
Teachers often tell you to write things down before you start teaching them so that the material is remembered better.
Remember and mentally repeat what you write, don't just rewrite without thinking.
This process is not difficult because the information will remain in short-term memory for about 10-20 seconds. And having mentally banished this information in your head, you will thus transfer it into the long-term memory.
Get enough sleep and don't forget to take a nap if possible
Most students try to spend more time studying and forget about sleep completely. But this only makes the situation worse, because lack of sleep affects memorization and some other cognitive abilities.
The link between sleep and memory has been confirmed by numerous studies, as many people know that memory consolidation occurs during sleep. It follows that the quality of sleep is directly related to the clarity of memories. If the quality of your sleep suffers, you will soon notice that your memories are slipping away. On the contrary, with enough sleep for over 8 hours, remembering certain moments is much easier and faster.
Research has also shown that naps can improve memory performance. One of the best-known studies in this area has shown that REM sleep (only about half an hour) increases the brain's ability to retain information. The researchers asked two groups of people to memorize a series of images with different images, then after about 40 minutes they showed another set of cards. One of the groups managed to take a nap in those 40 minutes.
Results:the group that took a nap retained much more information on the images (85%) than those who did not sleep at all (60%).
The reason, once again, is memory consolidation: the brain needs sleep for this process to go well, so some sleep will only be beneficial.
Conclusion:If you want to make the most of your memory reserves, give your body enough sleep.
Training
Exercise is known to improve cognition, concentration and blood circulation in the brain through the flow of oxygen to cells and mood.
Exercise also triggers the release of the cathepsin B protein in the brain. This stimulates the growth of neurons (brain cells) and creates additional connections in the hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for long-term memory and retention.
Exercise has been shown to improve brain function in numerous studies, so let's talk about that first. In one of them it was shown that just a few minutes of light exercise leads to an immediate improvement in memory. Participants in the experiment performed exercises of varying intensity, while scientists at that time observed changes in brain activity.
The results showed that during these exercises, the connection between the brain regions responsible for creating new episodic memories (autobiographical memory, which remembers according to the principle of "who, what, where and when") improved, as well asin the dentate gyrus and the hippocampus.
Therefore, in a few minutes or even an hour of exercise, you can improve your memory. You can try a treadmill or walk to begin with, and most people can.
Drink coffee and tea
Caffeine is a well-known brain stimulator. In large quantities, it is harmful to health and even dangerous, but there is no doubt that it improves memorization.
In a Johns Hopkins study, one group of volunteers were asked not to consume caffeinated foods at all and a second group were given 200 mg of caffeine-containing supplements 5 minutes after they were asked to see the images. The next day, even more photos were shown, some were identical to the past or similar in some way, there were also new ones.
The group that took the caffeine the day before did a much better job of identifying which images were similar to the original ones and were even able to distinguish between them.
Tea and coffee contain the highest amount of caffeine, in addition to this, they have many other benefits, for example the presence of antioxidants. Try to get your caffeine from natural tea and coffee, not from sugary carbonated energy drinks. In addition to caffeine, green and black tea contain components that improve memory. It is recommended to drink it all day, but preferably not before bedtime.
Eat foods rich in flavonoids
Foods that contain saturated fat and trans fat (red meat, butter) are bad for your memory. And just in preparation for the exams, students often eat many unhealthy foods that are even worse for the brain.
Numerous studies have shown that these foods can also lead to Alzheimer's and dementia in the future, which cause irreparable damage to brain health and lead to memory loss.
To improve memory, it is recommended to eat foods that are good for the brain, plus fish, olive oil, whole grains, nuts, blueberries.
In the long run, foods rich in flavonoids will help improve memory, especially dark colored berries and cocoa. Flavonoids are anti-inflammatory compounds found in plants that improve cardiovascular health. Studies have also shown it to be an excellent cancer prevention agent, and consuming blueberries for several weeks slows memory loss.
Another study found that regular blueberry consumption for 12 weeks improves spatial memory. The first signs of improvement appeared already in the third week of the experiment.
Dark chocolate containing 70% or more cocoa is also known to improve brain function.
Medicines and supplements
If you are looking to improve brain function through supplementation, omega-3 fatty acids are best.
When choosing supplements and before taking any tablets, pay attention to the label, omega-3 fats should be obtained from highly refined fish oil, preferably from fish found in cold waters, as they contain no mercury. They improve memory, especially in the elderly, and other cognitive functions.