As long as there's a scrap of paper to be written on, anything can be remembered. But why rely on writing everything down when there are easy, natural, and sometimes strange ways to improve your memory? These ten practical tips on improving your memory will definitely stimulate your brain.

好记性不如烂笔头，但是为什么明明有简单、自然、有时候有些奇怪的方法能提高记忆力的时候还要用写的方法呢？以下就有这十种能刺激你的大脑帮你提高记忆力的方法。

1. Play brain games

玩益智游戏

By the time you're an adult, you probably have a routine carved out. Get up, go to work, come home, be with family. These habits work because you've done them over and over, and they use the same neural pathways in your brain. Shaking up this routine can stimulate your brain so it keeps developing. Find brain teasers, or do sudoku and crossword puzzles in the paper. There are an influx of websites and game cartridges that will help you use your brain in different ways.Taking a new way home from work, visiting different places over the weekend, and reading different types of books will also activate lesser-used areas of the brain. Anything that's new, fun, and challenging will stimulate your brain.

成年之后你可能有一些固定的生活习惯。起床、上班、回家、和家人待在一起。有这样的一些习惯是因为你已经重复了很多次，在你的大脑中已经形成了固定的思维模式。改变这些习惯可以刺激大脑，改善记忆力。看一些脑筋急转弯、做做数独，填字游戏。使用一些网站或是游戏都可以让你用不同的思维方式思考。重新找一条回家的路，周末的时候去一些不一样的地方，阅读一些类型不一样的书籍也能激活大脑中那些平常较少使用的区域。不管你做什么，只要是与之前有些不一样的、有趣的、对你来说有一定挑战性的都能刺激你的大脑。

2. Eat brain foods.

吃益智的食物

Food is fuel for the body, and also fuels the brain! Eating a well-balanced diet will not only improve your memory‒it can reduce your risk of dementia in old age. Eat plenty of omega-3s, which can be found in a variety of fish. If you don't like seafood, try eating more walnuts, spinach, broccoli, and kidney beans. Eat more fruits and vegetables; they're packed with antioxidants that protect brain cells from damage.

食物是身体的养分，同样也是大脑的能量来源。饮食均衡不仅能改善记忆力还能降低患老年痴呆的风险。多吃鱼类的脂肪酸，要是你不喜欢吃海鲜，可以试试核桃，菠菜，花椰菜，芸豆，还要多吃水果和蔬菜，这些食物都含有大量的抗氧化剂，可以保护脑细胞。

3. Exercise.

锻炼

Exercising keeps your body in shape, but it also keeps your brain healthy. Losing weight not only restores your body to how it used to look, it also improves your memory function. Walking six to nine miles a week, helps preserve your memories.

锻炼不仅可以塑形还能保持大脑的健康，锻炼减肥不仅能让你重拾好身材还能改善你的记忆力。每周步行6-9公里可以让你的记忆力不减退。

4. Get enough sleep.

保证充足的睡眠

It's common sense that you need a certain amount of sleep to function every day, but did you know that sleep improves memory? It's because your brain stays so busy, even while you're asleep! The brain works on memories, even reorganizing them.

几乎所有人都知道每天要保证足够的睡眠，但是你知不知道睡眠还能改善记忆力呢？这是因为你的大脑一直都在运转，你在睡觉的时候也没有停下来。睡觉的时候大脑就在储存记忆、甚至是重组记忆。

5. Chew gum.

嚼口香糖

A study showed that chewing gum helped individuals stay more focused on a task. They also had improved short-term memory compared with those who didn't chew gum. Just make sure your chewing doesn't turn into annoying chomping‒that might disrupt others' concentration!

研究证明咀嚼口香糖的时候某些人也能将注意力集中在他的工作中。比起那些不嚼口香糖的人，这样也有助于提高短期记忆力。但是记住咀嚼口香糖的时候不要干扰到别人。

6. Manage stress levels.

调整好压力

Stress makes you feel strung out and hectic, but it also negatively impacts your brain. Over time, chronic stress kills brain cells, the section of the brain that forms new memories and stores old ones.

压力会让你精神恍惚、疲惫不堪，同时也会给你的大脑带来负面影响。多次以后长期的压力就会杀死脑细胞，大脑里的一块区域就会形成新的记忆、储存旧的记忆。

7.Have a healthy iron level.

维持身体里铁含量的正常水平

Iron deficiency can have adverse effects on brain function, including attention and memory issues. Studies have shown that people who have low iron levels and took memory tests took longer to finish these tests, as well as scored significantly lower than people with normal iron levels. Thankfully, taking an iron supplement easily reverses these negative points. In that same study, people who took supplements scored at a normal level just a couple of months later.

缺铁会影响大脑功能，包括注意力和记忆力的问题。研究表明铁元素含量低的人、参加记忆力测试所需时间长的人，他们体内铁元素的含量明显低于正常人。值得庆幸的是，补充铁很容易改善这一点。研究也表明补充铁以后，几个月内就能恢复正常水平。

8. Clench your right fist.

握紧拳头

Sounds crazy simple, right? … Or just crazy. But a study was done showing that individuals who clenched their right fists while learning new material, then clenched their left fist when recalling that material, remembered more than groups who didn't clench their fists at all.

很简单、很奇怪吧？但是一项研究表明：一些人在学习新事物的时候紧握拳头、回忆所学东西的时候也握紧拳头，记住的东西比那些没有握紧拳头的人要多。

9. Learn to focus.

专注

Multitasking has always been hailed as a good thing, a trait that makes people more productive. But it's not. Multitasking actually distracts your brain. Trying to juggle too many tasks at once prevents you from focusing on, and completing, one thing.

一次性干很多件事似乎是件好事，是工作效率高的一种表现。但事实上不是这样的，事情多会分散大脑的注意力，一次性应对很多件事会让你注意力没法集中在一件事情上。

10. Sip red wine.

喝点红酒

Last but certainly not least! Red wine is rich in resveratrol, which boosts blood flow in the brain and reduces risk of Alzheimer's disease. Be sure you drink in moderation, since alcohol can kill brain cells. Doctors recommend one glass a day for women, and two for men. If you want to stay away from alcohol completely, resveratrol is also found in cranberry juice, grape juice, peanuts, and fresh grapes and berries.

最后，红酒里富含白藜芦醇,可以增加大脑的血流量,降低患上阿尔茨海默氏症的风险。但是一定要喝得适量，因为酒精也会杀死脑细胞。医生的建议是：女人一天可以喝一杯，男人一天可以喝两杯。要是你不想喝酒，酸果蔓汁、葡萄汁、花生,和新鲜的葡萄和浆果里也有白藜芦醇。