What We Know About Improving Memory
Do you know physical exercises can help with depression problem?
The bigger, the better. We associate this logic to lots of aspects in our lives. If I had more money, or my apartment is too small. You would think that this logic would translate over to brain size. The larger the brain, the smarter you are. In fact, size does matter, but not in the brain as whole. What matters is what areas of your brain are larger.
Each section of the brain is linked with its own set of cognitive functions. The larger one section is the more skilled you are in those functions.
One area of the brain may help you monitor your heart rate, but that doesn’t necessarily make you smarter. But what if your hippocampus is large? This is the area that controls your memory. Now, that would definitely help you in reaching a higher level of intelligence. You could be the next Einstein, for example.
Oddly enough, memory actually plays a big role in disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder. I didn’t know this until conducting research for this article. PTSD affects one in 10 people throughout an individual’s lifetime. PTSD and other disorders like it not only cause altered emotional states, but it can also cause a decrease in memory function.
Studies show that individuals with PTSD and other depression related disorders have a smaller hippocampus. This is what can be attributed to the reduced memory function. The smaller the hippocampus and the more deteriorated the memory function becomes, the harder it is to reach full recovery from these disorders. So, how do you treat these disorders in an efficient manner before it’s too late?
Patients who suffer from depression related disorders are prescribed to drugs that increase their serotonin level. This causes the chemical imbalance to be corrected. Doctors say that results can be seen in the chemicals within a matter of hours; however, in order for results to be seen in behavior, it can take weeks. This could possibly be attributed to the fact that the hippocampus takes longer to grow back to its original state.
Scientists have performed experiments on mice that prove this theory to be true. When mice were given serotonin-enhancing drugs, their moods and behaviors changed after about a month. Coincidentally, their hippocampus’ had also grown new cells.
For those of us who are not struggling with depression or PTSD, a great way to increase the size of your hippocampus as an adult is to exercise. Physical exercise stimulates your brain, and it can improve your memory function. After a work-out, your brain forms new cells in your hippocampus which essentially causes it to experience growth.
There is still much to learn about the brain and its functions but it is interesting to read and understand the knowledge that scientific studies have already provided. The brain is a mysterious organ, and we will continue to discover more and more about it as the years, decades and centuries go by.
