Memory
So, you see the telltale signs that you or your parents are losing it. You might be right, but it doesn't need to be that way. You are not stuck!
So our brain ages, our hair gets thinner, our skin wrinkles, and along with memory we also lose some ability for attention, perception, computation, analysis and language. Life may not be fair, but it is still good, because there is good news. Never again need we say that “my memory is not what it used to be”.
You are not stuck with the brain you were born with and you are not stuck with your brain as it functions today. You can become sharper in every way because of the wonderful lifelong capacity that you possess, a thing called Brain Plasticity.
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For our entire life we can tap into our brain plasticity and produce new brain cells, influencing how fast they will be produced by doing cognitive activity, knowing that intense mental challenges provide extra resistance to ageing.
Dr. Norman Doidge, as the keynote speaker at the American Academy of Pain Medicine meeting in Feb 2009, as reported in Medscape Medical News, called the concept of brain plasticity “the most important medical advance in 400 years”.
Eric R. Kandel, M.D. (Nobel Laureate) has said, "Cognitive Neuroscience--With its concern about perception, action, memory, language and selective attention---will increasingly come to represent the central focus of all Neurosciences in the 21st century."
Researchers affiliated with the Mayo Clinic recently concluded a study wherein 600 over – 65’s were given the opportunity to do 40 hours of specific brain training by computer. (targeted cognitive training). The follow up memory tests were as if the clock had been turned back 10 years. Not only did memory improve, but participants felt more independent, had more confidence and were able to cut through confusion to hear conversations more clearly in noisy restaurants.
Yes, brains age, but as we age the brain also evolves. Overwhelming evidence from all over the world tells us that we can positively increase the likelihood of staying mentally and physically fit throughout our lives. Our skills can not only be maintained, they can be improved.
Growing evidence tells us that through focused cognitive activity such as stimulating interactive computer tasks along with targeted skills training, we can actally build a “cognitive reserve”, or a buffer to protect the brain by increasing the connections between the cells or promoting new cell growth.
We all know the phrase “use it or lose it”. That is certainly the case for healthy brains. Healthy aging demands cognitve activity and our ability to do memory depends upon healthy brain function.
As we age and we begin to experience subtle memory changes, we naturally worry about Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. A famous study shows that incorporating vigorous brain activity into our daily routine gives an increased neuroprotection against Alzheimer’s disease of more than 60%. It is said that an idle mind is the devil's workshop and that devil is Alzheimer's.
Another kind of memory
Finally, we should mention “working memory” in reference to our Brain Magic protocols. Science now tells us that working memory strength and not IQ might be the single most important factor in determining general intelligence.
While working memory training targets a very specific brain function, this function proves key to every conscious mental process. Whether we are reading, writing, speaking, listening, solving problems, playing an instrument, or just plain thinking, working memory and focus come into play.
No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
About half an hour a day is what is required. You may start with the practice mode at slower speed and then when ready, move into the training. You will be eased into a progressive training activity, which will guide you on your home computer through a series of steps which consult with you and adapt to you throughout the process. Along the way, the format changes in style and structure, and as your abilities grow, that growth leads to competence and up you go. The degree of gain is dose dependent. So enjoy the training and remember, the more you train, the more you gain.
Article: Specialists study Brain Plasticity and it's Transformative Potential
http://www.brainmagic.com/images/stories/snips/doidge%20keynote%20speaker.png
Article: Computer Exercises Improve Memory And Attention, Study Suggests
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090211161932.htm
Article: Brain-Training To Improve Memory Boosts Fluid Intelligence
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080505075642.htm
Article: Brain Plasticity: you CAN teach an Old Dog new Tricks
http://www.noprobo.com/posts/brain-plasticity-you-can-teach-an-old-dog-new-tricks
Article: Brain Exercise can enhance Memory, Thinking In Adults
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071119100331.htm
Article: Working memory: Is it the new IQ?
http://precedings.nature.com/documents/2343/version/1
Article: Horizon BBC How Does Your Memory Work?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/broadband/tx/memory/
Article: Improvement in Memory with Plasticity-based Adaptive Cognitive Training(IMPACT) study.
Article: Improving Brain Processing Speed Helps Memory
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19220558
Article: A cognitive training program based on principles of brain plasticity: results from the Improvement in Memory with Plasticity-based Adaptive Cognitive Training (IMPACT) study.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090210162039.htm
Article: Memory Decline Linked to an Inability to Ignore Distractions
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100325102403.htm
Article: The wisdom paradox: How Your Mind Can Grow Stronger As Your Brain Grows Older
Article: Cognitive plasticity as a modulating variable on the effects of memory training in elderly persons http://acn.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/22/1/63?maxtoshow=&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=COGNITIVE+TRAINING&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT
Article: Increased Prefrontal and Parietal Activity After Training of Working Memory http://www.klingberglab.se/pub/IncreasedPrefrotalActivityWMtraining.pdf?Horde=89895af65fe631068bf1c42e5475bcfb
Article: Keeping Priorities: The Role of Working Memory and Selective Attention in Cognitive Aging
http://sageke.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2005/44/pe34
Article: Horizon BBC How Does Your Memory Work?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/broadband/tx/memory/
Article: Cognitive training can alter the biochemistry of the brain
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090206081507.htm