When it comes to looking after our bodies it’s not just our physical health we need to consider, our mental health is equally as important, especially as we get a older. Many people take up hobbies such as puzzles, crosswords or sodoku to keep their brain active, but how important is this to our brain function exactly?

Elderly-Mind-Training

A study has been conducted by researchers at King’s Collage London exploring the effects of brain training exercises on people over 50 and has found that these exercises can help people with everyday essential tasks.

The study took place over a 6 month period, with nearly 7000 people aged 50 and over taking part. The research explored the differences between volunteers who were asked to play online brain training games for 10 minutes at a time, and volunteers who were simply asked to do internet searches. The results of the study showed after 6 months, volunteers who played the brain training games kept their broader cognitive skills better than the volunteers who did not (the benefit became apparent for volunteers who played the online training games at least 5 times a week). Taking part in online brain training not only improves memory and reasoning skills but can also improve how well older people carry out everyday tasks such as shopping, cooking, personal hygiene and managing personal finances.

The researchers are now conducting further experiments to see whether online brain training exercises could help reduce the risk of cognitive decline later in life and prevent the development of dementia.

If you would like to take part in the new brain training study, you can register online at http://www.protectstudy.org.uk/