Have a bad memory? It might actually mean your brain is working extra well

And who are we to disagree with science?

memory
(Image credit: Snap Stills/REX/Shutterstock)

And who are we to disagree with science?

Consider yourself a forgetful person? Well, it could actually mean you're super smart.

Yes. You read that right.

While you've been coveting photographic memory or the ability to retain all the lyrics to all your favourite songs, your brain's been saying, 'babe. you don't need to remember this so I'm going to forget it.'

We're all a little bit obsessed with how to retrain our memory and never forget anything again and we're even resorting to drinking a glass of wine to boost our memory (it's a hard life.)

But, while science has discovered that dogs are actually smarter than we think and have an episodic memory, Canadian research has also revealed that forgetting deals is a sign of how well our brains are working.

So basically knowing when it's better to forget stuff, rather than remember it, is your brain working at its optimum.

Blake Richards, Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto Scarborough, insists this to be the case, saying: 'The real goal of memory is to optimize decision-making. It’s important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on the stuff that’s going to help make decisions in the real world.’

‘We find plenty of evidence from recent research that there are mechanisms that promote memory loss, and that these are distinct from those involved in storing information,’ says Paul Frankland, who co-authored the study at the University of Toronto.

So, next time someone tells you you're a forgetful person, you can just reply and say you're actually smart.

Delphine Chui