How to Help Short-Term Memory

Short-term memory helps us remember things such as grocery lists, telephone numbers, directions and test information during last-minute studying. If you have trouble remembering simple things like where you placed your keys after work or if you remembered to turn your headlights off, you could be suffering from short-term memory loss. Memory loss can be caused by stress, diseases such as diabetes or it may be a symptom of lifestyle choices. Making changes in your daily activities such as exercising will help your short-term memory.

Instructions

• 1

  Play brain games, which force you to use parts of your brain that you normally don't engage every day. Similar to muscles in your body, you must exercise your brain to increase its efficiency. Brain games such as puzzles, word games, strategy games, cards and number games will keep your brain active and alert, improving short-term memory.

• 2

  Reduce stress, which left untreated will impair the hippocampus, an area in the brain responsible for constructing new memories, according to the Help Guide website. Decrease home or work stress by taking time to meditate each day. Brain scans have proven that meditation increases the power of brain cells and the cerebral cortex, thus sharpening our memory.

• 3

  Sleep the recommended eight hours a night and exercise routinely. A sleep-deprived individual's brain will not function at its highest capacity, affecting the ability to concentrate. Physical activity improves cognitive skills such as short-term memory, according to the Franklin Institute website.

• 4

  Learn mnemonic devices, which are techniques that use association to help you remember things such as names. When introduced to a new person, try connecting that person with an image or use alliteration to describe him, such as "Dancing Dan." If you are studying at the last minute for a test, use techniques such as acronyms or unusual sentences. For example, the acronym "FOIL" standing for "first, outside, inside, last," is used to remember the order of multiplying binomial equations. Use the sentence "My Dear Aunt Sally" to remember the first letter in the order of operations, multiply, divide, add and subtract.

• 5

  Take supplements that improve short-term memory. According to the Brain Power website, ginkgo biloba increases blood circulation and alertness and huperzia serrata, a Chinnese herb, is used to treat Alzheimer's disease because it protects neurotransmitters.