The #1 Habit to Start to Improve Your Memory, Recommended by Brain Experts
Not only can this habit help you preserve it as much as possible as you age, but it can even improve it along the way.
Reviewed by Dietitian Maria Laura Haddad-Garcia
Perhaps you see a face and cannot, for the life of you, remember the name. Or maybe you regularly lose track of your car keys. Again. Or you happen to forget to reply to that important email your boss sent after getting distracted by a meeting reminder.
No matter how it manifests, we’ve all had brief lapses in memory and will continue to do so. It’s part of being human!
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However, frequently forgetting entire words, facts, conversations or events on your calendar could be a red flag that your brain is struggling with something more severe. When memory loss becomes increasingly common or impactful, it’s nothing to shrug off. This is one of many symptoms of possible cognitive decline.
Researchers believe that signs of cognitive aging that affect memory can start as early as age 45. Genetics certainly set the stage, but lifestyle habits play a significant role in preserving—and possibly even improving—memory.
“Memory is many different things. It can be knowing facts like a state capital, remembering how to play a piece of music or how to ride a bike,” explains Meredith Broderick, M.D., a Seattle-based sleep neurologist and Ozlo Sleep medical advisory board member. “Preserving what we have is an important strategy.”
We can actually do one better, confirms Chris W. Winter, M.D., a neurologist, sleep specialist, MyFitnessPal spokesperson and host of the Sleep Unplugged podcast: “Memory can be improved.”
Related: 7-Day High-Protein Meal Plan for Healthy Aging
What Is the #1 Habit to Start to Improve Your Memory?
As is true with nearly every health-related topic, enhancing memory requires a multi-pronged approach. That said, study after study, such as a 2021 article in the Annual Review of Psychology and a 2023 one in PNAS, proves that one of the most impactful things we can do is focus on scoring high-quality sleep.
Turns out that getting solid snooze time is about so much more than boosting energy the next day. Winter confirms that sleep plays numerous roles within the brain, including:
Enhancing the processes that pump out waste products from the brain via the glymphatic system
Helping regulate our circadian rhythm (our internal clock) and the timing of many of our body’s processes
Playing a role in the balance of hormones and chemicals in our body, including testosterone, cortisol and dopamine
Affecting our immune system and inflammatory conditions
Influencing how we experience pain
Improving cognition, decision-making, emotional interpretation, concentration and focus
In addition, “sleep helps to improve and consolidate memory,” Brown continues. “Many studies have shown negative consequences to both short- and long-term memory when individuals are getting inadequate or dysfunctional sleep.”
Think of our brain cells like the staff at a library. At night, they’re sorting and filing details from the day to chronicle them as official members of the “memory” section of the brain. If this “staff” doesn’t have enough time to sort, their environment will remain a mess.
“There is a large body of evidence showing memory consolidation is higher after a night of sleep, with more improvement the longer we sleep,” Broderick says. “But even short naps make a difference.”
That’s because we’re learning that you need not shift into the deepest, dream-filled kind of sleep—REM sleep—for all memory support to occur, per StatPearls. Historically, brain experts believed that REM sleep is the stage where all memory consolidation happens. New research is increasingly showing stage 2 and stage 3 are also important, Broderick adds.
“In general, the more sleep, the better for memory consolidation and improvement in memory,” Broderick says, assuming that sleep is healthy sleep and not something like insomnia, rest that’s interrupted by sleep apnea or extended sleep that’s a symptom of depression.
“Neuroscientists think stages 2, 3 and REM all play a role in sleep-dependent memory consolidation, and the stage of sleep seems to depend on the type of memory, whether it’s visual, motor or procedural,” Broderick adds.
Beyond that filing and sorting process that takes place as we slumber, another vital cognition-supporting task does, too. This is where that deep REM sleep comes in.
“One of the most important functions of sleep is ‘brainwashing.’ Our brain cells form metabolic waste, or ‘trash, ‘ during the day, and it has to be cleared to maintain optimal brain health,” Broderick says. “This function occurs during deep sleep. When we look under the microscope at brains of people with neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer's disease, we see evidence they have more of these waste products in their brains.”
Related: The #1 Habit to Break for a Longer Life, According to a Dietitian
How to Sleep Better
Many of the strategies Winter and Broderick swear by for better sleep also just happen to be wise overall strategies to promote brain, heart, metabolic and overall health.
“Sleep is complex, and there’s no panacea for a good night’s rest, but one thing I recommend is that individuals experiencing sleep issues take a critical look at their diet,” Winter says. “People underestimate how truly interconnected sleep and nutrition are; what we put in our bodies in the hours leading up to bedtime can truly make or break how well we sleep.”
Winter promotes foods rich in protein and healthy fats, like salmon and nuts, which he deems “‘brain foods,’ since they help support memory, stress management and sleep.”
Broderick says that leading an overall healthy lifestyle, including the following strategies, can help you sleep better and, in turn, support memory, brain health and overall well-being.
Try to exercise most days for 30 or more minutes; these best exercises for your brain are ideal!
Incorporate brain-supporting foods.
Focus on a plant-based diet and limit inflammatory foods like added sugar.
If you think you could use some “insurance” regarding your diet, ask your doctor if you should take a multivitamin supplement.
Carve out time to socialize with loved ones.
Up the ante by keeping your brain active with games and puzzles.
Avoid caffeine and alcohol in the hours leading up to bed.
Aim to get sunlight during the day and pop a vitamin D supplement during the winter.
Turn to your preferred forms of self-care when stressed.
Ban electronics when you’re in bed.
And prioritize yearly physicals with your primary care doctor—or catch up at whatever cadence they recommend. Many of the age-related changes that occur in the brain are actually closely linked with our heart.
“It’s important to have a health care provider who knows you and your health history in detail. They should be coordinating preventative screening, in particular, for cardiovascular health risk reduction,” Broderick says. “As a neurologist, when I think of brain health, I immediately jump to vascular health, which is one and the same with cardiovascular health. Brain health and heart health go hand in hand.”
The Bottom Line
Genetics is certainly a factor in brain health. However, our daily habits can definitely help preserve and possibly improve cognition and memory. Winter confirms that improving sleep, exercising, eating well, seeking out stress-relieving activities, staying socially engaged, and participating in exercises like reading and games can improve memory.
Related: MIND Diet: Best Foods to Eat to Keep Your Brain Young
Read the original article on Eating Well.
