Seniors, Puzzles Help Keep Your Brain Sharp!
Mental activity is just as important as physical activity, especially in adults over the age of 50. Puzzles are the perfect task to maintain an alert mind and keep you mentally challenged while aging. Recently, the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry conducted a study to verify that adults over 50 who engage in puzzles, such as Sudoku or crossword puzzles, will have brains that function better.
In the study done by the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry (IJGP), data was collected on over 19,000 participants, a
ll above 50 years old. Participants of the IJGP study completed multiple online cognitive tests to demonstrate their skills in attention, memory, and reasoning.The overall consensus of this study was that the more engaged participants were in word and number puzzles, the better they performed on the tests.
Consequently, participants who regularly attempt puzzles demonstrated brain functioning comparable to peers 10 years younger. This advancement was clearly evident in these participants’ speed and accuracy while performing the cognitive tests.To clarify, doing puzzles will not prevent a person from cases like dementia and memory loss.
Dr. Jerri Edwards, from the University of South Florida, encourages continuous practice with puzzles at an older age, stating that cognitive engagement can at the very least cushion symptoms of mental decline. Edwards urges adults to challenge their minds by focusing their attention and ignoring distraction on tasks such as number and word puzzles.
Mental diagnoses like dementia and Alzheimer’s are proven to progress slowly. Because of this, it is important to practice tasks in order to combat or at least soften the symptoms. While there is no definite cure to these diseases, there are ways to be proactive and make the process slower. The best way to do this is to keep the brain strong, by doing puzzles and maintaining control of attention and focus.
Other mental activities that may be helpful for adults in this case are learning a new language or a new hobby. The primary goal is to stay mentally challenged. If you have any questions regarding senior care options or senior activities please give Pathways Senior Care Advisors a call, we’d love to help!