Before you reach age 30, your brain cells start to die and your body decreases its production of the chemicals that help your brain store information, according to Family Doctor. Aging, stress, medications, alcohol consumption and certain illnesses are only a few of the causes of impaired memory. Even if you have mild memory loss symptoms like forgetting why you opened the refrigerator, increasing your intake of essential and trace minerals may improve your brain's storage and recall functions.
Calcium
Calcium plays a role in several processes that affect your brain's function, including enzyme production. The Merck Manual notes that one of the symptoms of hypocalcaemia --- too little calcium in the blood --- is memory loss. Since memory loss can have many causes, you will need to see a physician to have blood or urine tests completed to determine if you have low blood calcium. He may treat you with intravenous calcium therapy or calcium supplements. If you know that your diet is calcium-poor, buy over-the-counter calcium supplements that provide at least 1 g, or 100 percent of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recommended daily intake for adults. Merck states that taking vitamin D supplements can increase your body's absorption of calcium.
Magnesium
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology discovered a link between memory loss and low magnesium intake in 2004. They concluded that both brain cell growth in children and adult brain functions require adequate dietary magnesium. In February 2010, Beijing's Tsinghua University, in cooperation with MIT and other institutions, reported that a synthetic magnesium supplement improved memory functions and prevented memory loss in laboratory animals.
Lead researcher, Dr. Liu, states that magnesium deficiency affects half of the population in industrialized countries, with an increased incidence among the aged. MIT notes that human clinical trials are in progress to develop magnesium supplements that could improve your memory and make it easier for you to learn new skills. In the meantime, eat magnesium rich foods to boost your intake to the 400 mg daily recommend by the FDA.
Selenium
Your brain cells require 10 times more oxygen than the rest of your body. Selenium helps your memory by clearing toxins that impair your brain's functions, according to the Franklin Institute. This trace element is a powerful antioxidant that bonds with vitamin E and scavenges free radicals and heavy metals in your brain. Selenium's removal of brain toxins improves the blood flow to capillaries, nerves and synapses that carry brain signals. This helps the brain restore its normal balance and makes room for the minerals that the brain needs for memory functions. The Linus Pauling Institute states that the established adequate intake for selenium is 55 mcg per day, available through a normal balanced diet and multivitamin supplementation.
References
- Family Doctor: Memory Loss With Aging: What's Normal, What's Not
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Reference Daily Intakes (RDIs)
- The Merck Manual: Calcium
- The Franklin Institute Online: Maintaining the Oxygen Balance in Your Brain
- Linus Pauling Institute: Micronutrients for Older Adults
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Magnesium Supplement Helps Boost Brainpower
