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Nintendo Keeps Wits and Reflexes Sharp
PreacherTom writes "While not definitively proven, the concept that video games can stave off mental degradation in the elderly is gaining favor. 'Nintendo ... boast[s] that Brain Age was developed with the help of Dr. Ryuta Kawashima, a respected Japanese neuroscientist whose face pops up at the start of every game. Kawashima believes brains can be kept young and nimble through the rapid repetition of simple mental challenges. The game is wildly popular in Japan, and 4 million copies have been sold worldwide since Brain Age was introduced 15 months ago.'"
I believe it. I had brain surgery to remove a minor tumor, it was supposed to be completely safe and undamaging, but the surgery didn't go well and I ended up with a brain injury. I had terrible problems remembering words, and reading was very difficult. What pulled me through was playing Boggle on my computer. I figure the word game helped me reactivate my damaged memory pathways, and retrained me in pattern recognition. I still suck at Boggle, but I always did, even before the surgery. But now I seem to be back to my previous levels of literacy again, and the computer game helped me get there.
Is there an alternative to this "Brain Exercise" game...?
Read Jane Eyre or Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton? Play tennis, golf, ping-pong? Learn to play the ukelele? Study Latin? Get together with friends to play bridge and argue politics?
It seems hardly surprising that playing video games is better than simply allowing your brain to rot. But I'd be equally surprised if playing video games is better than the more obvious and traditional ways to stay active as you age.
TFA dated September 25 2006. The author apparently has either found a time machine or hasn't been playing enough Brain Age!