If we are what we eat, then wouldn't we be what we drink as well? Our bodies are 60% water, and our brain is about 75% water, so it's obvious that water can impact our health. While there is no research to show that drinking water improves our memory, it has been shown that even a small amount of dehydration leads to confusion and problems with memory. In other words, don't wait to drink.
For more information:
www.BrainMemoryInc.com
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
Sleep Improves Memory
Study Shows How Sleep Improves Memory
ScienceDaily (June 29, 2005) — BOSTON -- A good night's sleep triggers changes in the brain that help to improve memory, according to a new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).
These findings, reported in the June 30, 2005, issue of the journal Neuroscience and currently published on-line, might help to explain why children -- infants, in particular -- require much more sleep than adults, and also suggest a role for sleep in the rehabilitation of stroke patients and other individuals who have suffered brain injuries.
"Our previous studies demonstrated that a period of sleep could help people improve their performance of 'memory tasks,' such as playing piano scales," explains the study's lead author Matthew Walker, PhD, director of BIDMC's Sleep and Neuroimaging Laboratory. "But we didn't know exactly how or why this was happening.
"In this new research, by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we can actually see which parts of the brain are active and which are inactive while subjects are being tested, enabling us to better understand the role of sleep to memory and learning."
New memories are formed within the brain when a person engages with information to be learned (for example, memorizing a list of words or mastering a piano concerto). However, these memories are initially quite vulnerable; in order to "stick" they must be solidified and improved. This process of "memory consolidation" occurs when connections between brain cells as well as between different brain regions are strengthened, and for many years was believed to develop merely as a passage of time. More recently, however, it has been demonstrated that time spent asleep also plays a key role in preserving memory.
In this new study, twelve healthy, college-aged individuals were taught a sequence of skilled finger movements, similar to playing a piano scale. After a 12- hour period of either wake or sleep, respectively, the subjects were tested on their ability to recall these finger movements while an MRI measured the activity of their brain.
According to Walker, who is also an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, the MRI results showed that while some areas of the brain were distinctly more active after a period of sleep, other areas were noticeably less active. But together, the changes brought about by sleep resulted in improvements in the subjects' motor skill performance.
"The cerebellum, which functions as one of the brain's motor centers controlling speed and accuracy, was clearly more active when the subjects had had a night of sleep," he explains. At the same time, the MRIs showed reduced activity in the brain's limbic system, the region that controls for emotions, such as stress and anxiety.
"The MRI scans are showing us that brain regions shift dramatically during sleep," says Walker. "When you're asleep, it seems as though you are shifting memory to more efficient storage regions within the brain. Consequently, when you awaken, memory tasks can be performed both more quickly and accurately and with less stress and anxiety."
The end result is that procedural skills -- for example, learning to talk, to coordinate limbs, musicianship, sports, even using and interpreting sensory and perceptual information from the surrounding world -- become more automatic and require the use of fewer conscious brain regions to be accomplished.
This new research may explain why children and teenagers need more sleep than adults and, in particular, why infants sleep almost round the clock.
"Sleep appears to play a key role in human development," says Walker. "At 12 months of age, infants are in an almost constant state of motor skill learning, coordinating their limbs and digits in a variety of routines. They have an immense amount of new material to consolidate and, consequently, this intensive period of learning may demand a great deal of sleep."
The new findings may also prove to be important to patients who have suffered brain injuries, for example, stroke patients, who have to re-learn language, limb control, etc.
"Perhaps sleep will prove to be another critical factor in a stroke patient's rehabilitation," he notes, adding that in the future he and his colleagues plan to examine sleep disorders and memory disorders to determine if there is a reciprocal relationship between the two.
"If you look at modern society, there has in recent years been a considerable erosion of sleep time," says Walker. Describing this trend as "sleep bulimia" he explains that busy individuals often shortchange their sleep during the week -- purging, if you will -- only to try to catch up by "binging" on sleep on the weekends.
"This is especially troubling considering it is happening not just among adults, but also among teenagers and children," he adds. "Our research is demonstrating that sleep is critical for improving and consolidating procedural skills and that you can't short-change your brain of sleep and still learn effectively."
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (2005, June 29). Study Shows How Sleep Improves Memory. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2005/06/050629070337.htm
ScienceDaily (June 29, 2005) — BOSTON -- A good night's sleep triggers changes in the brain that help to improve memory, according to a new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).
These findings, reported in the June 30, 2005, issue of the journal Neuroscience and currently published on-line, might help to explain why children -- infants, in particular -- require much more sleep than adults, and also suggest a role for sleep in the rehabilitation of stroke patients and other individuals who have suffered brain injuries.
"Our previous studies demonstrated that a period of sleep could help people improve their performance of 'memory tasks,' such as playing piano scales," explains the study's lead author Matthew Walker, PhD, director of BIDMC's Sleep and Neuroimaging Laboratory. "But we didn't know exactly how or why this was happening.
"In this new research, by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we can actually see which parts of the brain are active and which are inactive while subjects are being tested, enabling us to better understand the role of sleep to memory and learning."
New memories are formed within the brain when a person engages with information to be learned (for example, memorizing a list of words or mastering a piano concerto). However, these memories are initially quite vulnerable; in order to "stick" they must be solidified and improved. This process of "memory consolidation" occurs when connections between brain cells as well as between different brain regions are strengthened, and for many years was believed to develop merely as a passage of time. More recently, however, it has been demonstrated that time spent asleep also plays a key role in preserving memory.
In this new study, twelve healthy, college-aged individuals were taught a sequence of skilled finger movements, similar to playing a piano scale. After a 12- hour period of either wake or sleep, respectively, the subjects were tested on their ability to recall these finger movements while an MRI measured the activity of their brain.
According to Walker, who is also an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, the MRI results showed that while some areas of the brain were distinctly more active after a period of sleep, other areas were noticeably less active. But together, the changes brought about by sleep resulted in improvements in the subjects' motor skill performance.
"The cerebellum, which functions as one of the brain's motor centers controlling speed and accuracy, was clearly more active when the subjects had had a night of sleep," he explains. At the same time, the MRIs showed reduced activity in the brain's limbic system, the region that controls for emotions, such as stress and anxiety.
"The MRI scans are showing us that brain regions shift dramatically during sleep," says Walker. "When you're asleep, it seems as though you are shifting memory to more efficient storage regions within the brain. Consequently, when you awaken, memory tasks can be performed both more quickly and accurately and with less stress and anxiety."
The end result is that procedural skills -- for example, learning to talk, to coordinate limbs, musicianship, sports, even using and interpreting sensory and perceptual information from the surrounding world -- become more automatic and require the use of fewer conscious brain regions to be accomplished.
This new research may explain why children and teenagers need more sleep than adults and, in particular, why infants sleep almost round the clock.
"Sleep appears to play a key role in human development," says Walker. "At 12 months of age, infants are in an almost constant state of motor skill learning, coordinating their limbs and digits in a variety of routines. They have an immense amount of new material to consolidate and, consequently, this intensive period of learning may demand a great deal of sleep."
The new findings may also prove to be important to patients who have suffered brain injuries, for example, stroke patients, who have to re-learn language, limb control, etc.
"Perhaps sleep will prove to be another critical factor in a stroke patient's rehabilitation," he notes, adding that in the future he and his colleagues plan to examine sleep disorders and memory disorders to determine if there is a reciprocal relationship between the two.
"If you look at modern society, there has in recent years been a considerable erosion of sleep time," says Walker. Describing this trend as "sleep bulimia" he explains that busy individuals often shortchange their sleep during the week -- purging, if you will -- only to try to catch up by "binging" on sleep on the weekends.
"This is especially troubling considering it is happening not just among adults, but also among teenagers and children," he adds. "Our research is demonstrating that sleep is critical for improving and consolidating procedural skills and that you can't short-change your brain of sleep and still learn effectively."
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (2005, June 29). Study Shows How Sleep Improves Memory. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 21, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2005/06/050629070337.htm
For More information: http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
Exercise Improves Memory
In a recent study, researchers found that adult mice doubled their number of new brain cells in the hippocampus (your memory part of your brain) when they had access to running wheels.
Previous research suggests that maintaining a healthy flow of blood and oxygen protects the brain. Running may in fact give the brain a workout. A new study found that individuals consistently scored higher on intellectual tests after embarking on a running program. Seniors at Duke University started a 4-month exercise program. These seniors showed significant improvement in memory and other mental skills, also known as cognitive function. After 12 weeks of jogging, scores on complex computer based tests ''significantly increased''. These tests showed that joggers had a clear improvement in prefrontal function and that scores began to fall again if participants stopped their running routine.
Researchers at Southwestern Medical School gave a group of people two computer-based tests. Then the participants ran for half an hour on a treadmill. Once their heart rates were back to normal, the subjects were hooked up to an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine that reads brain activity and were given the two tests again. After exercise, the participants were able to make quicker decisions when taking the tests, particularly with the more difficult tests. The EEG machine reported that brain activity increased more rapidly.
For more information:
www.BrainMemoryInc.com
Previous research suggests that maintaining a healthy flow of blood and oxygen protects the brain. Running may in fact give the brain a workout. A new study found that individuals consistently scored higher on intellectual tests after embarking on a running program. Seniors at Duke University started a 4-month exercise program. These seniors showed significant improvement in memory and other mental skills, also known as cognitive function. After 12 weeks of jogging, scores on complex computer based tests ''significantly increased''. These tests showed that joggers had a clear improvement in prefrontal function and that scores began to fall again if participants stopped their running routine.
Researchers at Southwestern Medical School gave a group of people two computer-based tests. Then the participants ran for half an hour on a treadmill. Once their heart rates were back to normal, the subjects were hooked up to an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine that reads brain activity and were given the two tests again. After exercise, the participants were able to make quicker decisions when taking the tests, particularly with the more difficult tests. The EEG machine reported that brain activity increased more rapidly.
For more information:
www.BrainMemoryInc.com
Funniest and Most Embarrassing Stories
I once forgot...
I once forgot that I had put dye in my hair and went outside to mow the lawns. I sweated and the dye ran over my face. That would have been ok if i'd remembered and gone inside and washed it off. But no, I carried on outside, baking that dye into my skin under the hot New Zealand sun. Good one.
I only rememered four hours later when I went to the bathroom and saw the result. What an idiot. That dye did NOT come off. I lived for a week with a blotchy purple and red face.
For more information on how to avoid embarrassing moments like that one:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
I once forgot...
My flatmate once ate a whole pineapple and after he finished I said to him, "I thought you don't like pineapple". And he goes, "I forgot". I wondered how someone could forget that don't like something and then I understood. What he meant was, he didn't like pineapple because he was allergic to it. His mouth swelled up and his tongue was so fat and thick, he couldn't talk properly. That night we all went out for dinner with a group of friends. The waitress, thinking he was mentally handicapped talked to him all night very, very slowly. Ha, ha, it was so funny but he was so embarrassed.
For more information on how you can avoid such embarrassing moments:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
I once forgot that I had put dye in my hair and went outside to mow the lawns. I sweated and the dye ran over my face. That would have been ok if i'd remembered and gone inside and washed it off. But no, I carried on outside, baking that dye into my skin under the hot New Zealand sun. Good one.
I only rememered four hours later when I went to the bathroom and saw the result. What an idiot. That dye did NOT come off. I lived for a week with a blotchy purple and red face.
For more information on how to avoid embarrassing moments like that one:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
I once forgot...
My flatmate once ate a whole pineapple and after he finished I said to him, "I thought you don't like pineapple". And he goes, "I forgot". I wondered how someone could forget that don't like something and then I understood. What he meant was, he didn't like pineapple because he was allergic to it. His mouth swelled up and his tongue was so fat and thick, he couldn't talk properly. That night we all went out for dinner with a group of friends. The waitress, thinking he was mentally handicapped talked to him all night very, very slowly. Ha, ha, it was so funny but he was so embarrassed.
For more information on how you can avoid such embarrassing moments:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
10 Easy Ways to Improve YOUR Memory
1. Sleep
If you don't get enough sleep this will definately affect your memory and it has been scientifically proven that if you take a quick nap after studying, this will actually help you to process the information and remember it better than someone who doesn't take a nap (now you never have to feel guilty again for dozing off during your study).
2. Eat Healthy
If you eat too much or eat too much sugary foods, this will actually divert blood from your brain to your stomach. You should never eat while studying, especially eating lollies/candy.
3. Believe in Yourself
Make a decision today that YOU can remember. You CAN remember. Most of us think we can't so we don't even try. But your brain is a powerful computer able to store and retrieve information. Don't underestimate yourself.
4. Use Color
I have everything color coded. You'll be surprised how much this actually works.
5. Use Your Imagination
Use lots of dramatic imagination when trying to remember something. I made up a whole fairy tale story in order to remember glycolysis and it worked so well.
6. Listen to Mozart
According to researchers, Mozart helps the brain to remember far more than any other type of music, even other music that sounds like Mozart. Strange but true.
7. Vitamin C
Researchers found that children who were given vitamin C were able to remember more than children who weren't by up to 100%. Chewing 1000mg per day is the recommended dose.
8. Phenyalanine
This is an amino acid used to sweeten some sugarless products like chewing gum. You shouldn't eat too much of this though 'cos I found out the hard way that it's a laxative (and it really, really IS a laxative). But apparently eating phenylalanine also improves memory. But you shouldn't chew on gum while studying, this will divert brain from the blood to your stomach and you don't want that.
9. Exercise
Scientifically proven that even if you do easy exercise like yoga, you will improve your memory. The more aerobic the better though as this circulates oxygen to the brain.
10. Laugh
I don't know if this has been scientifically proven but I do seem to remember more when I'm in a good mood. So I advise finding ways to make yourself laugh and de-stress.
If you would like more information go to:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
If you don't get enough sleep this will definately affect your memory and it has been scientifically proven that if you take a quick nap after studying, this will actually help you to process the information and remember it better than someone who doesn't take a nap (now you never have to feel guilty again for dozing off during your study).
2. Eat Healthy
If you eat too much or eat too much sugary foods, this will actually divert blood from your brain to your stomach. You should never eat while studying, especially eating lollies/candy.
3. Believe in Yourself
Make a decision today that YOU can remember. You CAN remember. Most of us think we can't so we don't even try. But your brain is a powerful computer able to store and retrieve information. Don't underestimate yourself.
4. Use Color
I have everything color coded. You'll be surprised how much this actually works.
5. Use Your Imagination
Use lots of dramatic imagination when trying to remember something. I made up a whole fairy tale story in order to remember glycolysis and it worked so well.
6. Listen to Mozart
According to researchers, Mozart helps the brain to remember far more than any other type of music, even other music that sounds like Mozart. Strange but true.
7. Vitamin C
Researchers found that children who were given vitamin C were able to remember more than children who weren't by up to 100%. Chewing 1000mg per day is the recommended dose.
8. Phenyalanine
This is an amino acid used to sweeten some sugarless products like chewing gum. You shouldn't eat too much of this though 'cos I found out the hard way that it's a laxative (and it really, really IS a laxative). But apparently eating phenylalanine also improves memory. But you shouldn't chew on gum while studying, this will divert brain from the blood to your stomach and you don't want that.
9. Exercise
Scientifically proven that even if you do easy exercise like yoga, you will improve your memory. The more aerobic the better though as this circulates oxygen to the brain.
10. Laugh
I don't know if this has been scientifically proven but I do seem to remember more when I'm in a good mood. So I advise finding ways to make yourself laugh and de-stress.
If you would like more information go to:
http://www.brainmemoryinc.com/
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