Neuroscientist Dr. Haru Cuts Through the Noise — Vol. 4: Is Your Brain Organized? Sleep Is Key to Improving Memory!
In an age of information overload, children absorb more information than adults as they grow. To explain how the brain stores all this information as memories, Dr. Haru, a neuroscientist, will clarify the brain's neural circuits.
Organizing memories is the sleeping brain's job!
Most parents probably share the desire for their children to improve academically. Instead of telling them, "Study hard!", it might be better to say, "Let's get some good sleep." This is because deep, restful sleep helps what has been learned solidify better in the brain.
For example, let's say you divide people into two groups after they've learned information like faces or names: one group sleeps, and the other doesn't. As has been repeatedly proven by experiments, the group that slept remembers the information better later on. This means that children who sleep well might perform better on tests.
Why does sleeping well lead to better memory? While we're awake, our brains receive a tsunami of information from the outside world. Some of this information is processed and retained in a brain region called the hippocampus. This information, held in the hippocampus, is transferred to the larger cerebral cortex during sleep and stored as long-term memories. If new information floods the brain before this memory "relocation" occurs, the information held in the hippocampus can be overwritten, and previously recorded information lost.
Many people have probably crammed for a test the night before. Even if you pass the test at that moment, unfortunately, much of what you learned might be forgotten later. Memory is also important in daily life. To have memorable days, get enough sleep every day.
Dr. Haru's Profile:
Haruhisa Okawa
Graduated from the University of Tokyo. Graduated from the University of Southern California with a Ph.D. in Neuroscience.
Subsequently, engaged in research as a neuroscientist at Washington University for approximately seven years.
Afterward, served as the project manager for neurological projects at a foreign pharmaceutical consulting firm.
Currently works at a foreign pharmaceutical company, belonging to the central nervous system department.
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References:
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