Are you losing your edge?
Or getting Alzheimer’s?

No!

It’s NOT a ‘senior moment’
It’s NOT the loss of brain cells
It’s NOT your brain shutting down

Your memory is still all there!
But you do need to learn the ways to find it.

The Memory Doctor, Dr. Allison Lamont, PhD, says,

“Yes, if you do nothing at all to help your brain, you will lose some of your brain power after 55. But the good news is, you can re-grow your brain capacity, just as you can improve your fitness”.

Research shows that the best results come from planned, systematic brain exercise. Even little changes in the way you challenge yourself each day can bring positive results. Science hasn’t yet found a cure for Alzheimer’s, but most over-55 brains will definitely benefit from increased brain activity, and, with the new brain connections created, will be able to push back brain decay.

Learn these NINE easy secrets for a youthful brain.

1. Can You Hear Me?

31 million Americans have hearing problems. Is one of them you? Did you know that, if you are struggling to hear, it is more than likely that you are not creating a strong memory connection for the information you were trying to hear?. You can’t process and understand what you didn’t hear properly – so you will forget.
Have your hearing tested every 3 years after age 50. Keep the volume down on your TV, Ipod or MP3. The last thing you want is more hearing loss. Protect your hearing and improve your memory.

2. Do I Look Fat In This?

The old adage, “fat and happy” just isn’t true any more. Obesity, or near obesity, is the enemy of a sharp and alert mind and obese people are usually very unhappy. While there is a lot of hype around about BMI (body mass index), there are indications that people with a healthy BMI (around 20) score much better on memory tests than those with BMI’s of 30 or more. I know there are exceptions to this general principle, but your all round health will benefit by thinking lean and trim when it comes to diet. Reducing your calorie intake by 250 a day – either by saying No to that muffin, or burning off 250 calories with a brisk walk, will work wonders for your alertness and sharper memory.Aim to keep your BMI below 25. Eating 4 or 5 small, balanced meals a day keeps your metabolism even and reduces the risks associated with high blood sugar levels.

Don’t know what your BMI is? Check here to work it out.

3. Hello Doctor!

Obesity, hypertension, or high blood cholesterol in middle-age (approximately 50 years old) significantly raise the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease, or a related dementia, in later life. (This comes from research by Miia Kivipelto and colleagues from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden). Each of these risk factors roughly doubled the risk so that those in their 50s with all 3 conditions ran a risk of developing dementia that was 6 times higher than for folks with none of them. Please get checked out regularly for blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

4. Pass the Salad, Please.

You’ve always known that vegetables are supposed to be good for you, right? Well, here’s the proof!

Jae Hee Kang reports that research, conducted over 10 years at Harvard Medical School , found that middle-aged women who consistently ate generous portions of leafy or cruciferous green vegetables were better able to preserve their cognitive abilities into advanced age than those who did not. Women who ate 8 or more servings (1 serving = 1/2 cup) of green, leafy vegetables (such as spinach or romaine lettuce) a week demonstrated the cognitive function of someone 1.7 years younger than those who ate 3 or fewer servings per week.

Green leafy vegetables seemed to preserve cognitive function best, perhaps because of their high vitamin B and antioxidant content, (e.g. vitamin C and folate) which may prevent the deleterious effects of ageing on the brain caused by free radicals So eat up that salad and eat more greens.

5. “Stop the noise! I can’t think!”

Have you ever felt like this? Well, actually, it’s probably true. If there are lots of distractions around you, then it is much more likely that you won’t remember, unless you have paid particular attention. When you want to remember, reduce the background noise.

6. Practice the Seven Second Rule!

It takes 7 seconds of concentration or processing to commit information to memory. You’ll find full details of this amazing fact in the Lamont and Eadie book: Seven Second Memory plus six other powerful memory techniques. Rewire your brain for a youthful mind. For now, though, think of paying attention as shining a flash-light on what you want to remember – and do this for seven seconds, focusing on the details and creating as many clues as you can for your memory.

7. Not just a Fishy Tale!

It’s now well-known that the Omega-3 fatty acids found in most types of fish (but particularly cold water fish) are brain-friendly. People who eat any type of fish at least once a week do appreciably better on mental tests than those who avoid seafood. Try to eat at least two fish dishes weekly; if fish is not for you then, at the very least, consider taking Omega-3 dietary supplements.

8. Move it, Baby, Move it!

You already know that exercise is good for you. Being fit gives you a great feeling of well-being. But did you know that exercise is great for your brain also?
Even a 20 minute walk a day will help activate circulation that is so vital for brain growth. 40 minutes to an hour is even better.

9. Your Brain, Your Friend, Your Future.

Do you believe you have a sharp brain? Maybe not, since you are reading this, but I want you to change that.
Dr. Lamont says that having a positive attitude and strong self-belief in the power of your brain are very important in achieving brain growth.
You can do it!

Take these nine actions today and you are on your way to a better performing brain. Not only that, you are building up a buffer against brain decay in later life.
People who are purposeful, conscientious, sociable and self-motivated show less cognitive decline and fewer Alzheimer’s disease symptoms.

Make a conscious effort to stay on task, take an interest in new activities and engage in life around you.

Why not get your memory check and the six-part memory challenge, Brain Tune?
It’s free, it’s based on science and your brain will love you for it. We’ll never reveal your details to anyone.

For more free help and personal advice on diet, exercise, brain food and improving your memory, please visit the Brain and Memory Foundation.

Contrary to media buzz that urges us to multi-task every day, the human brain can focus on only one thing at a time. That focus might only be for a nanosecond, but so-called multi-tasking is a rapid shifting of focus from one thing to another of everything we are trying to do at once. So you can see that it is virtually impossible to pay quality attention to them all.

How to stop losing your car!

Your brain quickly ‘forgets’ anything that you have not committed to long-term memory so, if you put down your keys or wallet – or even park your car – on autopilot, without thinking, then your memory will let you down. To remember where things are, you need to focus on the item, concentrate on where they are being placed. You need to create a ‘memory trace’. There are ways to help your memory, though. Try these.

Tips for remembering where things are:

Losing your car can be a major hassle.

• Look for the closest parking spot, even if it takes a few extra turns.
• Keep track of the number and level of your parking spot. Jot this down.
• Look out for landmarks like stores, large signs or trees.
• Use your mobile to photograph your parking spot, with an identifier in the frame.
• Pressing your remote locking device will give you a welcoming flash of your lights, if all else fails!

Your wallet is basically your entire life wrapped in one place.

• Designate a dish as your official wallet holder, and use it for things you use daily (watch, keys).
• Keep this dish (or simply your wallet) on a table you’ll see it on your way out.
• Or, put your wallet in your jacket or handbag; then you’ll know it’s with you when you leave. Make sure to check for it when you change jackets or handbag.

To keep track of your keys:

• Leave them on a hook next to the door.
• Attach a paging or remote locator device to your keychain.
• Most men have a cup or bowl for spare change; use this to store your keys. (See previous tip.)
• Giving a trusted friend or family member a spare might save your sanity in an emergency.

To avoid losing your mobile phone:

• Designate one convenient place for it in your home, and always keep it there. By your charger is good.
• Avoid silent and vibrate modes if possible — calling your own number can help find the phone.
• Take a pic of a page that reads: This phone is owned by (your name) Please phone (number) or email (address). Lock the image into your memory card so that it is never erased. It will work for honest people!

Losing phone numbers & e-mail addresses is like losing your world:

• Store contact information directly into your phone.
• Have an iphone or blackberry to store numbers and addresses the moment you receive them. Back up this data on your PC, regularly.
• Keep a physical address book in addition to your mobile devices or create one on your computer. Ask for business cards and keep them in a card-holder.

Take steps to make sure you don’t lose your PC files:

• Keep a well-labelled database (Excel spreadsheet is good) and make sure to always back up important files.
• Create shortcuts on your desktop to your most important files to avoid spending loads of time looking for them.
• Take care with the files you choose to download from the internet. Some dubious sites are sprinkled with spyware, which can disrupt your computer’s functioning. These can cause you to reinstall your operating system, and lose your files in the process.
• Invest in an anti-surge filter to safeguard your PC against power outages.

Losing work documents will not enhance your reputation or image.

• Back up all of your work. Ensure your network backups are happening each day and/or use PDF’s, zipped files, DVD’s or even photocopies.
• An alphabetical or date-based database is useful, either electronic or hard copy.

Keeping track of receipts will save time for reimbursements, tax claims or refunds.

• Develop and maintain a filing system, from the smallest purchases (coffee shop receipts) to the most extravagant (trips, cars, etc.). Doing this gets you in the habit of filing away all those loose bits of paper.
• Make copies of your most expensive purchases, like plasma TVs, computers, electronics or appliances. Sometime they’ll need servicing.
• Keep your receipts in a specific desk drawer, labelled, or with the rest of your other accounts.

Make sure you don’t lose your family pet!

• Make sure Fido or Samantha has a collar and a tag. Micro-chipping is also an excellent idea.
• Keep a close eye on your pets, especially around open doors and windows.

Items on your shopping list

• Use your mobile to photograph your recipe or shopping list – have it with you in the store.
• Practice one of the memory techniques from Seven Second Memory. With just a few minutes concentration and practice you’ll give yourself a lifelong technique that will ensure you never forget an item in the store again.

For further information on your memory and how it works, go to How to Remember 101 as well as What Actually IS Your Memory

And I knew exactly what she was going to say!

The eeriest feeling came over me as my mind was jumping ahead of her sentences and I only just stopped myself from completing them for her. I haven’t seen Megan for at least two years and I only knew her brother as a little boy when we were all at school together. I couldn’t have known about his accident …… could I? Was this what people call déjà vu?

I've been here before - deja vu?

If it was, then I had just become one of the nearly 70 percent who admit to getting this feeling at least once in their lives.

A higher percentage occurs in people 15 to 25 years. Anyway, the sight, sound, taste or even smell of something leads us to think that we’ve experienced before, although we know that we couldn’t have.

Déjà vu is a French term that literally means “already seen” and it has several variations, including déjà vécu, (already experienced); déjà senti, (already thought); and déjà visité, (already visited). French scientist Emile Boirac, one of the first to study this strange phenomenon, gave the subject its name in 1876.

There are more than 40 theories as to what déjà vu is and what causes it, and they range from reincarnation to lapses in our memory processes.

I’m still trying to work out why I knew what Megan was going to say. I even knew what the coffee shop was going to look like, although I can’t ever remember being in there before.

The most common misuse of the term déjà vu seems to be with precognitive experiences — experiences where someone gets a feeling that they know exactly what’s going to happen next, and it does. But it is important to remember that déjà vu is experienced during an event, not before. Precognitive experiences — if they are real — show things that will happen in the future, not things that you’ve already experienced.

Hallucinations that are brought on by illness or drugs sometimes bring a heightened awareness and these are confused with déjà vu. False memories that are brought on by schizophrenia can be confused with déjà vu as well. Unlike true déjà vu, which typically lasts from 10 to 30 seconds, these false memories or hallucinations can last much longer.

I don’t think I was having a hallucination! Actually, scientists don’t all agree about why these experiences happen. Déjà vu occurs in individuals with and without a medical conditions.

Several psychoanalysts attribute déjà vu to simple fantasy or wish fulfillment, while some psychiatrists ascribe it to a mismatching in the brain that causes the brain to mistake the present experience for something similar that has happened in the past. Hence the feeling of familiarity. Then again, many parapsychologists believe it is related to a past-life experience that may have been repressed or forgotten.

I know that I had an eerie experience in that coffee shop but it looks as if there’s a lot more investigation to be done before I can tell you, for certain, why.

Or forgotten an important birthdays? Been out and worried about whether you’d taken your medication, turned out the light, turned off the oven?

So, what’s happening?

Are you losing your edge? Or getting Alzheimer’s?
No!

It’s NOT a ‘senior moment’
It’s NOT the catastrophic loss of brain cells
It’s NOT your brain shutting down

Your memory is still all there! But you do need to learn the ways to find it.

The Memory Doctor, Dr. Allison Lamont, PhD, says,

“Yes, if you do nothing at all to help your brain, you will lose some of your brain power after 55. But the good news is, you can re-grow your brain capacity, just as you can improve your fitness”.

Research has shown that the best results come from planned, systematic brain improvement. Even little changes in the way you act each day can bring positive results. Science hasn’t yet found a cure for Alzheimer’s, but most over-55 brains will definitely show improvement, and be able to push back brain decay.

Learn these NINE easy secrets for a youthful brain.
Start today.

1. Can You Hear Me?

31 million Americans have hearing problems. Is one of them you? Did you know that, if you are struggling to hear, it is more than likely that you are not creating a strong memory connection for the information you were trying to hear?. You can’t process and understand what you didn’t hear properly – so you will forget.
Have your hearing tested every 3 years after age 50.
Keep the volume down on your TV, Ipod or MP3. The last thing you want is more hearing loss. Protect your hearing and improve your memory.

2. Do I Look Fat In This?

The old adage, “fat and happy” just isn’t true any more. Obesity, or near obesity, is the enemy of a sharp and alert mind and obese people are usually very unhappy. While there is a lot of hype around about BMI (body mass index), there are indications that people with a healthy BMI (around 20) score much better on memory tests than those with BMI’s of 30 or more. I know there are exceptions to this general principle, but your all round health will benefit by thinking lean and trim when it comes to diet.

Reducing your calorie intake by 250 a day – either by saying No to that muffin, or burning off 250 calories with a brisk walk, will work wonders for your alertness and sharper memory. Aim to keep your BMI below 25.
Easting 4 or 5 small, balanced meals a day keeps your metabolism even and reduces the risks associated with high blood sugar levels.

Don’t know what your BMI is? Go to: www.prevention.com/bmicalculator to work it out.

3. Hello Doctor!

Miia Kivipelto and colleagues from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, reported that obesity, hypertension, or high blood cholesterol in middle-age (approximately 50 years old) each significantly raised the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia, in later life. Each of these risk factors roughly doubled the risk so that those in their 50s with all 3 conditions ran a risk of developing dementia that was 6 times higher than for folks with none of them.
Get checked out for blood pressure, cholesterol levels.

4. Pass the Salad, Please.

You’ve always known that vegetables are supposed to be good for you, right? Well, here’s the proof!

Jae Hee Kang reports that research, conducted over 10 years at Harvard Medical School , found that middle-aged women who consistently ate generous portions of leafy or cruciferous green vegetables were better able to preserve their cognitive abilities into advanced age than those who did not. Women who ate 8 or more servings (1 serving = 1/2 cup) of green, leafy vegetables (such as spinach or romaine lettuce) a week demonstrated the cognitive function of someone 1.7 years younger than those who ate 3 or fewer servings per week.

Green leafy vegetables seemed to preserve cognitive function best, perhaps because of their high vitamin B and antioxidant content, (e.g. vitamin C and folate) which may prevent the deleterious effects of aging on the brain caused by free radicals
So eat up that salad and eat more greens.

5. “Stop the noise! I can’t think!”

Have you ever felt like this? Well, actually, it’s probably true. If there are lots of distractions around you, then it is much more likely that you won’t remember, unless you have paid particular attention. When you want to remember, reduce the background noise.

6. Practice the Seven Second Rule!

It takes 7 seconds of concentration or processing ot commit information to memory. You’ll find full details of this amazing fact in the Lamont and Eadie book: Seven Second Memory plus six other powerful memory techniques. Rewire your brain for a youthful mind.

For now, though, think of paying attention as shining a flashlight on what you want to remember – and do this for seven seconds, focusing on the details and creating as many clues as you can for your memory.

7. Not just a Fishy Tale!

It’s now well-known that the Omega-3 fatty acids found in most types of fish (but particularly cold water fish) are brain-friendly. People who eat any type of fish at least once a week do appreciably better on mental tests than those who avoid seafood.
Try to eat at least two fish dishes weekly; if fish is not for you then, at the very least, consider taking Omega-3 dietary supplements.

8. Move it, Baby, Move it!

You already know that exercise is good for you. Being fit gives you a great feeling of well-being. But did you know that exercise is great for your brain also?
Even a 20 minute walk a day will help activate circulation that is so vital for brain growth. 40 minutes to an hour is even better.

9. Your Brain, Your Friend, Your Future.

Do you believe you have a sharp brain? Maybe not, since you are reading this, but I want you to change that.
Dr. Lamont says that having a positive attitude and strong self-belief in the power of your brain are very important in achieving brain growth.
You can do it!

Take these nine actions today and you are on your way to a better performing brain. Not only that, you are building up a buffer against brain decay in later life.
People who are purposeful, conscientious, sociable and self-motivated show less cognitive decline and fewer Alzheimer’s disease symptoms.

Make a conscious effort to stay on task, take an interest in new activities and engage in life around you.

Your brain will love you for it.

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Please feel free to reproduce this article on your website. See our article reproduction policy for details. In brief, all you need to do is reproduce the article above and add the following credit footer including the links unaltered and then email us at brainandmemoryfoundation@gmail.com to let us know where you’re reproducing it because we’ll be excited to see it on your site! Please let us know if we can help in any other way. We want to get the word out.

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This article was reproduced with permission of its author Gillian Eadie, founder of the Brain and Memory Foundation. Gillian is an award-winning educator with more than 20 years as a principal at several prestigious private schools and is a Churchill Fellow. For more free help and personal advice on diet, exercise, brain food and improving your memory, please visit the Brain and Memory Foundation.