It seems an inevitable part of aging–as our bodies grow older, our ability to remember gradually fades. It starts early for some people, but by the tim

e we reach our 50 and 60s, most of us find that many things we should remember are simply slipping our minds. But new evidence suggests that it’s possible to slow, and even reverse, time’s effects on your mind.

　　当我们的身体变老，我们的记忆力也逐渐衰退，这似乎是衰老过程中无可避免的一部分。这在某些人身上出现得很早，但是当我们到了五六十岁的时候，我们当中多数人都会发现很多我们应该记得的事都被忘记了。但是新的证据显示，要减缓或甚至倒转时间对你脑袋的影响是有可能的。

　　While it was previously believed that the brain could not create new cells, studies have found that learning new things actually does stimulate brain growth and helps protect against diseases that affect the mind.

　　先前大家相信大脑无法制造新的细胞，但研究发现学习新事物的确会刺激大脑生长，并有助于保护大脑免受影响智力的疾病所侵袭。

　　Professor Eric Kandel, who won a Nobel Prize for his study of the biology of the human memory, says best way to save your memories is to keep your brain in good shape.“Continue to use your mind actively,”he suggests.“Continue to work. In fact, take on difficult tasks. Learn another language.”Through this kind of mental exertion, he says, people can keep their memories whole into their 80s and 90s.

　　因研究人类记忆生物学而荣获诺贝尔奖的艾瑞克·坎戴尔教授说，拯救你记忆的最佳办法就是让你的大脑保持良好的状态。“持续积极地使用你的大脑。”他建议，“持续地工作。事实上，要接受困难的任务。学习其他语言。”他说，通过这种精神锻炼，人们可以让记忆一直完整地保持到八九十岁。

　　In addition, many doctors are finding that what you eat may also affect how well you remember things. Mark Mattson, a researcher at the National Institute on Aging, says that reducing the amount of calories fed to older rats and mice by 30 percent has helped enhance learning and memory.

　　此外，许多医生也发现，你所吃的东西也会影响你的记忆力。国家老化学会的研究员马克·麦特森说，把给年龄较大的老鼠的食物热量降低30%，对提高它们的学习力和记忆力有帮助。

　　This is bad news for people who eat too much, and Dr. Jeff Victoroff of the University of Southern California says, "The typical American diet is almost perfectly designed to wreck the brain."

　　这对吃太多的人来说是个坏消息。南加州大学的杰夫·维克托若夫博士说：“典型的美式饮食几乎完全是设计来损害大脑的。”

　　While it’s hard for many people to control their diet like that, many doctors are saying that even small steps can make a big difference. Cutting back on alcohol, or eating more fatty fish, like salmon or tuna, can have a big effect on your memory in the long run.

　　虽然对很多人来说，要像那样控制饮食很困难，但许多医生都说，即使是小小的一步也可以造成很大的不同。减少酒精的摄取，或多吃含油脂的鱼，例如大大麻哈鱼或金枪鱼，从长远来看就可以对你的记忆产生很大的影响。