Tag Archives: memory

Indoor plants are a proven mood booster!

14 Thursday Apr 2022

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

indoor-plants-wp

Whether it’s a fern, English ivy or even a succulent, like aloe, being surrounded by greenery prompts an immediate mood lift, and lowers your risk of depression. According to the University of Michigan, our brains are naturally primed to release feel-good chemicals in the presence of nature, and it also triggers a relaxation response. Even when we’re stressed! Being near greenery also increases our ability to concentrate, makes us more productive, and boosts memory by 20%.

Follow me on Facebook

10-minute phone call brain boost!

31 Thursday Mar 2022

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

brain-boost-phone-call-wp

You don’t need to do crossword puzzles or play an instrument to get a brain boost. We can strengthen our neural connections with a 10-minute phone call with a friend. That’s long enough to start releasing the brain chemical, serotonin, which improves our mood and awakens our creative thinking. That’s because, during a conversation, we’re thinking about multiple things – what our friend is saying, what we’re going to say next, and predicting how our friend will respond. That involves both brain hemispheres, making our mind more flexible, and slows down brain aging.
To make it even better?
Have that 10-minute conversation while you’re walking. Talking while exercising lights up even more brain areas, making you a better problem solver, while improving overall cognitive health by increasing blood and oxygen flow to the brain.

Follow me on Facebook

Learning a new language boosts brainpower!

20 Monday Sep 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

To improve your memory, learn another language. A report in the journal Neurology shows that bilingual people developed dementia nearly 5 years later than those who spoke only their native tongue. And previous studies have suggested that fluency in 2 languages keeps more areas of our brain active, and can improve observation, decision-making, and multitasking. To start learning another language today, try the free app: DuoLingo. Or check out the Pimsleur Method – which offers downloadable MP3 language lessons – and you can get your first one for free at Pimsleur.com.

Follow me on Facebook 

Experiences vs Possessions

01 Thursday Jul 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Here’s a great explanation from Psychology Today for why experiences make us happier than possessions: Because the experience becomes part of our identity. It becomes the story you tell, the memory you have, and something that can even influence your personality – like if you discover something in another culture that really inspires you. And the memories from an experience get rosier over time, but possessions LOSE value. And let’s face it. When someone asks for your life story – you’re more likely to tell them about the trip you took to Sri Lanka that changed your life, than the cool car you owned 10 years ago.

Follow me on Facebook

Beat the kids at your next game!

19 Wednesday May 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Want to be able to beat your grandkids at Scrabble or Words With Friends? Here’s how to keep your brain sharp as you get older: Spend two minutes a day catching up with a friend! It doesn’t matter whether you do it in person, over the phone, or on Facebook, it’ll cut your risk of age-related memory loss in half. That’s according to scientists at Cornell University. It’ll also boost your odds of staying sharp after you retire by about 50%. The reason? Because talking to someone you care about kick-starts the body’s production of neurotrophins, which are compounds that fuel the growth of healthy brain cells. That’s it: Just 2 minutes of chatting with a friend every day can keep your brain sharp as you age.

Follow me on Facebook 

One of the best ways to keep our brain sharp as we age…

25 Thursday Mar 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

…may be a busy schedule of work, exercise, friends, hobbies, and volunteering. 

University of Texas researchers studied over 300 people over age 50. And those with the busiest schedules and social lives had better memories, sharper reasoning, faster problem-solving, and a greater vocabulary at every age. Because keeping busy regularly exposes us to new situations and people, and helps us learn new things. All of which have been shown to improve brain function, and help stave off age-related memory decline.

Follow me on Facebook

Are you getting the sleep your body needs?

16 Tuesday Feb 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

If you regularly get less than 7 hours of sleep, it could be affecting your brain… and raising your risk for age-related memory decline, or Alzheimer’s! Research in HealthDay News says that’s because during sleep, our brain systems have a chance to sweep away plaque that blocks nerve signals, and triggers disease. But without adequate sleep, that clean-up process gets cut short, which can eventually lead to memory loss and overall cognitive decline.

Follow me on Facebook  

Good news! If you love gardening…

30 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s good for your brain!

UCLA did brain scan studies, and they found gardening cuts the risk of dementia in half! It can even help reverse mild memory loss that’s already begun. It’s down to the combination of physical and mental effort that’s required for gardening. It boosts gray matter in the areas of the brain linked to memory and cognitive skills. So if you love gardening, know that it loves you back. Now start that indoor flower or herb garden and look forward to Spring for an outdoor garden project!

Follow me on Facebook 

Do you want to safeguard your memory as you age?

03 Thursday Dec 2020

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Play computer games! Especially first-person shooters, like a game from the “Doom” series or “Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 or 4.” That’s from researchers at Leiden University in the Netherlands. They found people who played for at least 5 hours a week out-performed non-gamers on tasks related to working memory. The reason? Because first-person shooters require players to react quickly, adapt on the fly, and pay attention to both visuals and sounds, all of which grow areas of the brain linked to perception, visualization, and language. And the more those areas are stimulated, the faster your synapses fire, which helps protect and improve memory storage and retrieval.

Follow me on Facebook 

Want to make it easier to remember new information?

02 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Go stand in the sun! 

According to research from the University of Arizona, exposure to the sun’s blue light rays increases your brain’s ability to process information… guaranteeing it’ll get stored in your long-term memory. It activates the hippocampus; that’s the part of the brain that stores memories. 

So, the next time you need to commit something to memory, head outside, and stand in the sun for a few minutes while you mull it over. You’ll cement it in your memory banks.

Follow me on Facebook