Have you found yourself wondering what you were looking for or what you were doing? While we all occasionally ask ourselves these things, it seems to occur more frequently as we age. Although we can’t turn back our biological clock, there are some things we can do to improve on our forgetfulness.
How to Improve Memory in Seniors
Researchers have been studying this for quite some time now. In doing so they’ve discovered a few things that are helpful for seniors.
Get Better Organized
There are many things that we try to remember that we don’t need to remember if we’d only take some time to get better organized. This includes things like car keys, purses, hats, and glasses. When you have a place for everything and everything in its place life is much simpler.
Make a Concerted Effort to Pay Attention and Concentrate
Researchers have discovered that aging reduces people’s focus along with their ability to pay attention. Therefore, you must work harder to filter out distractions. You must also consolidate any new information you learn so it’s stored in your lasting memory. These things require uninterrupted time and conscious rehearsal.
Practice Good Nutrition
Another, often overlooked, way to improve memory in seniors is to ensure that you’re eating a balanced diet. There are a few foods that researchers emphasize this diet should include:
- Blueberries should be eaten on an empty stomach.
- Resveratrol, an ingredient in red wine is beneficial.
- Foods containing omega-3 fatty acids like salmon, tuna, and walnuts are good.
- Research suggests you should also eat foods rich in folic acid like spinach, broccoli, beans, peanuts, fresh fruits, whole grains, and seafood.
Unfortunately, this isn’t something that supplements alone can help you with. They’re meant to mainly make up for any nutritional deficiencies you may have. Supplements work especially well if you’re lacking the vitamins B, C, or D3.
Get Plenty of Physical Exercises
To improve memory in seniors you’ll also want to get plenty of exercises, especially vigorous aerobic exercise. Of course, you’ll want to talk to your doctor before you start hiking, biking, or swimming. These activities won’t only improve your circulation and blood flow to your brain, but they’ll also help with your memory. Researchers still don’t know why these benefits occur. Some believe they’re due to stress relief and mood improvement – two things that are known to produce positive emotions. While these emotions are shown to help improve memory in seniors, again, researchers don’t know why.
Also, Get Plenty of Brain Exercise
Memorization gets easier the more you do it. Besides learning to rely more on your memory (e.g., memorizing grocery or task lists), you can also do puzzles, play an instrument, or learn a new language. It doesn’t matter how you do this, it’s important to just do it because these activities will all help to improve memory in seniors.
Practice Good Sleep Hygiene
Sleeps studies show that your brain processes the day’s events and moves them into your memory while you sleep. The good news is that naps also help with this. If you’re having problems sleeping, make sure to talk to your doctor. They can help you with suggestions for good sleep hygiene or medications for insomnia.
What This All Means
It’s possible to improve memory in seniors unless they’ve been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Another important part of doing this is getting your hearing checked so you know what’s going on around you. When you make an effort to do these things, you’ll find that you’re much less frustrated with your life. We’re here to help at Countryside Hearing Aids in Pinellas County, FL so contact us today.
Picture Credit: 123rf.com