6 Tips to Improve Your Short-Term Memory

How many times have you started talking about something only to forget what you wanted to say mid-sentence? Or walked into a room but forgetting why you were there in the first place? Short-term memory problems are a common issue that affects the younger population as well, they’re not just a problem of the elderly.

When we say short-term memory we refer to the process of storing information for 20-30 seconds and it doesn’t mean that you need to remember every single piece of information but being able to recall the gist of things is required in many instances. Forgetfulness can be as irritating as it can be dangerous, especially while you’re driving or cooking. So how can you improve your short term memory and stop forgetting the most menial things?

Here are 6 tips on how to do it without the use of drugs or medications, and these tips may not help you memorize a deck of card but they will surely help you remember where you put your keys or what you were supposed to buy at the supermarket.

Ginger.

According to research, ginger can help you with dementia and memory loss significantly. The research was conducted on healthy middle-aged women who were taking ginger supplements and revealed that they can improve working memory, attentiveness and reaction time. You can introduce ginger to your everyday diet as a spice, eat it raw or make a tea out of it.

Meditation.

Meditation is beneficial for both short term and long-term memory and according to research meditation beginners can notice significant improvement in just 8 weeks.

No sugar and sugary foods.

According to research, sugars can have a detrimental effect on your short term memory. Sugar raises the blood sugar levels and causes a mood swing and reduces your attention span. Since sugar is nowadays in almost every processed food try to avoid them and limit your sugar consumption if you want to improve your memory.

Supplements.

There are a number of supplements which can have a beneficial effect on your short term memory, like curcumin, magnesium and ginkgo biloba. Curcumin is the main ingredient in turmeric and many studies have shown that it can improve memory and attention span. Magnesium l-threonate can boost both long-term and short-term memory, while ginkgo biloba is among the top brain supplements in the world.

A minimum of 8 hours of sleep.

According to statistics 50% of the US population isn’t getting enough sleep per night. This is bad because insufficient sleep can lower your brain function significantly and reduce memory span.

Dark chocolate.

This type of chocolate isn’t just good for your waist, it boost your brain function as well. Dark chocolate can improve the blood flow to your brain, attention span and responsiveness. One study revealed that 2 cups of hot chocolate can improve your memory by 30% for 3 hours.