How to Boost Your Memory
The following page explains how to use simple, all-natural, proven techniques to improve your memory and create lasting recall.
Lists below are abbreviated for reading ease. All info is scientifically supported. Sources and more details are in the References section.
KEY: Grds:goodreads . Ama:amazon . You:youtube
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Intro
Before exploring memory enhancing strategies, here’s a brief review of some basic facts about memory.
Facts
. The human body is nature’s greatest miracle & the brain is nature’s greatest data center.[1]
. The brain can store more than 1M petabytes (or 1B gigabytes) of memory.[2]
. Memory is the ability to recall events facts ideas and feelings from the past.[3]
. Memories are formed in different regions of the brain and in many different ways.[4]
. The brain grows to age ninety, so if you’re younger than that you haven’t peaked yet (😉)![5]
Little lifestyle hacks can make a big difference.
Let’s look at those now…
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Food
Good
. Soy — edamame soymilk tofu tempeh so good.[6]
. Fruit — do grapes oranges & tomatoes regularly.[7]
. Nuts — almonds are best, walnuts close second.[8]
. Detox — heavy metals detox with food is a must.[9]
. ORAC — eat high antioxidant food so important.[10]
. WFPB — plant foods incr cognitive performance.[11]
. Ginger — small dose enhances memory & focus.[12]
. Variety — diff foods boost diff areas of the brain.[13]
. Berries — blue/purple color targets/boosts brain.[14]
. Nitrites — oxygenate blood—greens beets cocoa.[15]
. Rosemary — small dose incr memory & sage too.[16]
. Cinnamon — ceylon protects brain raise memory.[17]
. Mushrooms — lions mane, cordyceps are musts.[18]
. Pomegranate — excellent for memory and heart.[19]
Bad
. Fat — sat-fat from dairy meat junk food is awful.[20]
. Fish — metal toxic; only 3-4 serv/mo hurts brain.[21]
. Dairy — less cognition, more fractures & cancer.[22]
. Bread — white bread/flour decreases cognition.[23]
. Sweets — cake pie cookies not sweet to brain.[24]
. Star fruit — risk permanent, avoid completely.[25]
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Liquid
Good
. Teas — green and black superb, but no milk.[26]
. Water — hydration key for memory & focus.[27]
. Coffee — caffeine ups all mental markers.[28]
Bad
. Alcohol — destroys; causes memory loss.[29]
. Aspartame — linked memory loss, ADHD.[30]
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Supplements
Good
. Ginseng — significantly improves memory.[31]
. Creatine — ups memory know dose/safety.[32]
. Rhodiola — learning memory energy athlet..[33]
. B vitamins — B6 B9 B12 key; greens&beans.[34]
Bad
. Omega-3 — supp hurt memory, more forget.[35]
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Miscellaneous
General
. Writing — consolidates thoughts to memory.[36]
. Learning — variety subjects lifelong so good.[37]
. Positivity — mindset affect learning/memory.[38]
. 5G & EMF — cause memory and focus probs.[39]
. Superagers — do hard things, it builds aMCC.[40]
. Essential oil — seven scents work see below.[41]
. Obesity & BP — both really bad for cognition.[42]
Specific
. Sleep — glymphatic rest essential; naps wise.[43]
. AI chat — avoid. it wrecks memory & learning.[44]
. Brahmi — ancient herb for brain, pain & more..[45]
. Fluoride — known neurotoxin; it decreases IQ.[46]
. Exercise — repairs/grows brain; #1 item here.[47]
. Studying — take short breaks most effective.[48]
. Marijuana — cause long-term brain damage.[49]
Endnotes
. Where to start — exer 3food liq do repeat.[50]
. And prayer — prayer changes molecules.[51]
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Recommended
Books
. How Not to Age — Greger · Grds Ama
. Switch On Your Brain — Leaf · Grds Ama
Articles
Watch
. Power Foods for the Brain — 2016 · You
. You Can Grow New Brain Cells — 2015 · You
. Understand & Improve Memory — 2022 · You
. Tools..Boost Memory & Attention — 2026 · You
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References
KEY: age:greger>age . cc:clevelandclinic.org . ch:chapter . da:draxe.com . hub:andrew-huberman . nf:nutritionfacts.org . nih:nih.gov . ted:ted-talk . x:x.com
[1] Source: Mandino, Greatest Salesman.
[2] Storage: brain can store a million petabytes, or a billion gigabytes; largest computer doesn’t come close (x/storage).
[3] Definition: Benner, Baker Encyclopedia of Psychology and Counseling 2nd Edition.
[4] Memories: formed in hippocampus & elsewhere; different ways/types of memory: primary secondary sensory short/long-term (cc/memories & Baker.. see #3 above).
[5] Growth: brain grows to ~90yo (news/growth).
[6] Soy: improves cognition and memory, so enjoy edamame soymilk tofu tempeh (nf/soy).
[7] Fruit: grapes protect brain, oranges boost memory, tomatoes up cognitive performance (nf/grapes & nih/oranges & da/tomato).
[8] Nuts: almonds significantly improve memory; walnuts improve critical thinking & decision making (news/almonds & news/almonds & nf/walnuts).
[9] Detox: heavy metals hurt hippocampus where learning/memory take place; detox metals with chlorella cilantro apples citrus lemon-water tea turmeric cinnamon more (da/detox & nih/detox & news/detox & see Brain #11 #16 #30 #31 #36).
[10] ORAC: antioxidant-rich foods fight brain inflammaging, lutein key (nf/ORAC & for lutein foods see Eyes #13 #15).
[11] WFPB: aka whole food plant based, increases cognitive performance, even potatoes; whole food better than juice, vegetables best (nf/WFPB & nf/WFPB @6:15 & see Brain #12).
[12] Ginger: ups memory and focus (see Brain #14).
[13] Variety: different foods boost different areas of brain, the more variety the better (nf/variety @2:15-3:00).
[14] Berries: blue/purple berries excellent, target and boost brain; blueberries improve memory, 1cup/day good, 2cups/day great (nf/berries & nf/berries & nf/berries & see Brain #17).
[15] Nitrites: improve brain blood flow; best foods: leafy greens beets cocoa (nf/nitrites & nf/nitrites).
[16] Rosemary: small dose ups memory within hours, large dose worsens memory, 1/2 tsp good, 1tbsp bad, sage too, herb way to go, extract no benefit (age/ch:mind & nf/rosemary & Brain #22).
[17] Cinnamon: ceylon cinnamon, neuroprotectant enhances memory (da/ceylon & nih/cinnamon).
[18] Mushrooms: those eating mushrooms have lowest odds long-term cognitive impairment, lions mane significantly improves memory cognitive functioning, cordyceps boosts memory cognition; tip: powder good easy way to get it (nf/lions-mane & nih/lions-mane & da/cordyceps & da/powder).
[19] Pomegranate: super antioxidant fights disease, lowers bp inflammation pain, improves memory & heart health (da/pomegranate & nih/pomegranate).
[20] Fat: high saturated fat intake from dairy meat processed food linked to poor memory cognitive decline brain disease (age/ch:mind & nf/fat & nf/fat @5:12-5:47).
[21] Fish: getting omega-3 from fish has no benefit, may make things worse because of mercury, only 3-4 serv/month hurts cognitive performance (nf/fish & nf/fish & Brain #25 #28 & Food #29 #33 #55).
[22] Dairy: associated with cognitive decline and increased fractures, and it turbocharges cancer growth (nf/dairy @2:20 & Food #31 & Cancer #27 #57).
[23] Bread: specifically white bread, negatively affects cognitive performance (nf/bread @1:43).
[24] Sweets: cake pie cookies negatively associated with cognitive performance (nf/sweets @1:52).
[25] Star fruit: avoid completely, it kills kidneys, powerful neurotoxin cause seizure coma irreversible brain damage death (nf/star-fruit).
[26] Tea: green and black tea calm and relax brain while increasing alertness perception mental activity, adding milk wipes out all benefits (nf/tea & nf/milk).
[27] Water: maintaining good hydration is essential for memory attention & focus (nih/water).
[28] Coffee: caffeine in coffee ups cognitive performance memory alertness reasoning problem-solving decision-making; 2-3 cups/day best (nf/coffee & news/coffee & hub/coffee @53:03-1:00:50).
[29] Alcohol: interferes with new brain cell formation, or put more directly it destroys brain growth; causes memory loss (news/alcohol & news/alcohol & Food #41).
[30] Aspartame: linked to memory loss & ADHD (see Headaches #17).
[31] Ginseng: significantly boosts memory (da/ginseng & nih/ginseng).
[32] Creatine: enhances memory (nf/creatine - for dose and safety see Exercise #28).
[33] Rhodiola rosea: aka golden root, improves learning memory energy athletic performance, decreases belly fat and stress (da/rhodiola).
[34] B vitamins: homocysteine in body plays role in poor memory, vitamins B9-folate B12 and B6 detox homocysteine from body, best foods beans and greens (nf/B-vitamins).
[35] Omega-3: supplements hurt memory increase forgetting (nf/omega-3); tip: get from food (see Headaches #9).
[36] Writing: consolidates thoughts to memory (Leaf, Switch ch13; nih/writing & news/writing).
[37] Learning: keep learning throughout life, neuroplasticity sharpens cognition and memory - reading music games building things and so on (da/learning).
[38] Positivity: having a positive mindset during learning improves memory, neutral or negative mindset does not produce memory enhancing effects; happy thoughts lead to a stronger memory (news/positivity & news/happy).
[39] 5G & EMF: known since 1800s that electromagnetic frequencies cause memory focus and many other health problems, see Cancer #50 for more info and how to prevent it from harming you.
[40] Superagers: those who have sound minds in their 70s and 80s that are as healthy as people in their 20s and 30s, they do hard things, which builds the aMCC in the brain, which keeps memory healthy late into life (hub/superagers & nih/superagers).
[41] Essential oil: aromatherapy scents that help memory are peppermint orange lemon lavender jasmine rosemary sage (news/essential-oil & see Brain #48).
[42] Obesity & BP: at any age obesity changes brain, impairs memory speech decision-making task-completion; high blood pressure—BP—bad too, shrinks brain (nf/obesity & nf/BP).
[43] Sleep: glymphatic flow key for peak cognition/brain health; naps 20-90min enhance learning and memory (see Sleep #24 & nf/sleep & hub/sleep @35:25-36:28 & hub/naps @1:00:50-1:04:48).
[44] AI chat: wrecks memory and learning (see Brain #43).
[45] Brahmi: aka bacopa monnieri, ancient herb used thousands years, significantly enhances learning & memory, fights stress treats ADHD epilepsy pain & sexual performance problems; tip: if new to trying see risks start smallest dose (da/brahmi & nih/brahmi & nih/brahmi & nih/brahmi and dose).
[46] Fluoride: neurotoxin decreases IQ, avoid fluoridated water (nf/fluoride and see Food #35).
[47] Exercise: all exercise improves cognition, even light exercise—walking yoga tai chi—increases hippocamus where memories formed, reverses age-related memory loss; minimum: 2-3x/wk 30min, maximum: everyday still good for brain; early in day best; fasted exercise grows new neurons (nf/exercise & hub/exercise @25:07-29:15 & hub/early @58:26-59:20 & ted/fasted) … adding beets super good (see Nitrites above); see also Depression #41, Brain #44, watch Boost above.
[48] Studying: pace yourself, take occasional 5min breaks, it’s more effective in long-term (x/studying).
[49] Marijuana: causes brain damage, especially under 25yo, teens who use may never fully restore brain across all five domains—processing speed, verbal comprehension, reasoning, executive functioning and memory; bottomline: never use before 25yo or frequently; when it comes to brain marijuana is weapon of mass destruction (news/marijuana & nf/marijuana & x/marijuana & x/wmd).
[50] Where to start: consider this approach: 1 exercise regularly. 2 eat right -top three foods above: orac wfpb mushrooms. 3 fine-tune all liquids. 4 do hard things -see superagers. 5 rest relax repeat.
[51] Prayer: words change molecules, watch how water and rice change; words have the power of life & death (Pro 18:21), speak life.
* End note: if you made it this far, nice job. And if you want more, here's: How to View Food.
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Whatever brings you to this page, I wish you great health and hope on your journey.
Be strong and believe. You can do all things (Phil 4:13).
Peace and Love,
Ben
