Brain Training Can Keep You Sharper Longer — Dave’s Diary

Training drills can make you faster, stronger, better at certain skills so why not better with your brain?  A first-of-its kind study finds that older adults who engaged in brain training drills retained measurable benefits up to 10 years later, suggesting that such interventions may help stave off impairments of aging that rob seniors of their independence.  That’s reason enough right there to hit the old mind gym!  Which is where, by the way??  Consider these finding as reported by the Boston Globe.As baby boomers search for ways to stay mentally sharp, the popularity of brain games has soared in recent years, but researchers have said there has been a lack of evidence showing these interventions are effective in the long term.

Until now! But in the new study, researchers used paper-and-pencil tests that honed problem-solving involving letter and number patterns, in addition to computer drills that tested the ability to quickly distinguish an image among a constantly changing screen.

The latest trial found that nearly three-quarters of those who participated in reasoning exercises and information-processing drills still displayed those abilities a decade later leading researchers to conclude these training interventions have the potential for either delaying dementia or kind of attenuating it.

She stressed that the findings do not indicate brain-training is a way to prevent dementia, but rather to slow its arrival.