To keep your memory sharp, it's helpful to understand things that affect memory for better or for worse.
1. Spending most of your time doing one type of activity doesn't stimulate your brain.
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If you don't challenge your brain with different activities, you end up with problems trying to remember certain things. Brain cells that aren't stimulated don't work as well. The old adage about using it or losing it is true when it comes to memory.
2. Do routine mental tasks yourself to keep your memory healthy.
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Try balancing your checkbook by hand instead of using a calculator. Read instead of watching TV. Put together a bicycle yourself instead of buying one already assembled.
3. Tension and stress can cause memory lapses.
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Anxiety and stress can interfere with your ability to remember information. Try to slow down and relax. Learning a relaxation technique, such as deep breathing or muscle-relaxing exercises, may help.
4. Diabetes, hypothyroidism, depression, and high blood pressure can cause memory problems.
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That's why it's important to keep long-term (chronic) conditions like these under control. It is also possible that medicines used to treat these conditions may affect your memory. Talk with your healthcare provider if you are having problems with your memory.
5. Diet doesn't affect your brain and memory power.
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Fruits and vegetables containing the antioxidants beta-carotene and vitamins C and E may improve your memory. Good antioxidant sources include dark green, red, yellow, and orange fruits and vegetables.
6. Hearing and seeing correctly can improve your memory.
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Wear eyeglasses and use a hearing aid, if you need to. These aids help you focus on what's being shown or said to you.
7. Your medicines may cause memory problems.
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You may be taking a medicine that dulls your memory. Medicines that may cause memory problems include some heart medicines, antidepressants, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, and cold remedies. When you begin taking any new medicine or change the dosage, keep an eye on your reactions. Even medicines not known to affect memory may affect yours. Medicine interactions also may affect your memory.
8. Drinking alcohol doesn't affect memory.
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If you regularly drink too much alcohol, it can affect short- and long-term memory. This problem may not be reversible. People who drink moderately may have a smaller risk for memory problems as they age than people who drink heavily or who don't drink at all. Experts recommend that men younger than 65 limit how much alcohol they drink to no more than 2 drinks a day. Men 65 and older and women of any age should have no more than one drink a day. One drink is about 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor.
9. Using memory aids such as a pocket notebook, cell phone alarm, or voice recorder to remind you of coming events or things to do can help jog your memory.
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Making a daily "to-do" list can help you remember appointments or tasks. If you seem to "lose" items like keys or sunglasses, decide on one spot for them and always put them there when you aren't using them.
10. Exercising regularly and staying fit can boost your memory.
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Heart health boosts your memory because a healthy heart pumps blood with nutrients and oxygen into the brain. Congestive heart failure and long-term untreated high blood pressure can hurt memory.
11. A memory problem is deemed serious if it affects your day-to-day activities.
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Forgetting someone's name from time to time is normal. You may have a more serious problem if you can't remember how to do things you normally often do, or can't remember how to get to places you often visit. Normal memory loss doesn't get worse over time. But dementia can cause severe memory problems over months to years.
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Author: Case, Jameson
Online Medical Reviewer: Campellone, Joseph, MD
Online Medical Reviewer: Fetterman, Anne RN BSN
Online Medical Reviewer: Turley, Raymond Kent, MSN, RN
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