I Have A Photographic Memory...I Just Don't Have Any Film

Today is Diwali--happy Diwali to Devis and SM readers alike, from us and Barack! Ha. I had big plans to do elaborate things with my kids for Diwaili (Rangoli Barack Obama anybody?). But guess what happened? I forgot it was Diwali till this morning.

Was there a bunch of controversy over "The Brown Girls" recently? Some talk about race? Can't really remember.

Over the weekend, I saw a segment on some random show on TV vaguely related to test-tube babies in India that I thought would be great to post and discuss with you guys. Know what happened? I forgot, in any more detail, what the segment was really about.

Are you sensing a theme?

Can you remember what it is?

If you can you are ahead of the game. Or at least ahead of MY game. Mommy-brain, sleep-deprivation, old-age, general senility--not sure what combination of these factors, and others, is at play here but, recently, my memory has gone the way of the dodo. Which is what brings me to the sight I must have been this morning, walking from the Bart to my office, chanting out loud--"turmeric turmeric turmeric"--so that I would remember what I wanted to write about.

Turmeric! I read an article on the way to work about how eating turmeric actually increases your brain capacity. How very Indian, no? Studies have found that turmeric increases brain function when eaten at least once every six months. Doctors suggest stirring one teaspoon of the spice into soups or stews. All you have to worry about is flashbacks to having the stuff rubbed all over you right before your wedding--maybe you have FORGOTTEN about that and maybe the turmeric will make your brain capable of remembering it again...!

Some other ways to improve your memory, starting with my favorite:

1) Drink More Wine.

Okay, fine, for me the advice would be to probably drink LESS wine. But the studies show that drinking red wine in moderation (key word) slows the buildup of plaque in the brain. "Plaque" just sounds gross--and is. Drink up.

2) It's All Small Stuff

Stop stressing out over your Halloween costume, your in laws, your job, work-life "balance," whether your unborn child is going to go to college. The release of stress hormones in our body shrinks the hippocampus which is NOT a college for a certain animal but rather the brain's memory center. Yes. Stress shrinks your brain. Freaky.

3) Sleep

Bless those Harvard people. Apparently a team of geniuses have figured out that sleep, in addition to being mighty fun, improves our memory. A study at Harvard Medical school showed that a 45 minute nap of non-REM sleep boosted recall of information by almost 50%. Next up, Harvard is going to try to prove the remarkable proposition that sugar tastes good. (By the way, the woman in the picture is wearing a "sleep suit" to ameliorate itchiness during sleep...who knew?)

4) Party

You don't need the Sudoku afterall. A University of Michigan study found that talking to another person for a mere 10 minutes--about ANYTHING--increases memory as much as doing a brain teaser.

5) Don't Eat Tofu

That's right! Here it is: Your excuse to pass the tofu...away. Soy has many benefits but apparently helping our memory isn't one of them, according to some people at Oxford. A recent study showed that eating two or more servings of soy a day can decrease memory by as much as 20 percent, particularly among vegetarians. Here's to giving my children the Fruit Loops instead of the edamame...!

6) Something Really Great

There was one more thing...but I forget what it is. I'll report back after I have a glass of wine and take a nap...at a party.