A study conducted by Australian researchers has revealed that people who do not engage in complex mental activity over their lifetime have twice the shrinkage in a key part of the brain in old age.
Michael Valenzuela of the school of psychiatry at the University of New South Wales has revealed that the finding results from an analysis of the brain scans used during the study.
He says that the finding sheds more light on the link between lifestyle and dementia.
The results of the study also add strength to the evidence that mental exercises, like puzzles and new languages, stave off ageing diseases.
“We’ve got strong evidence here that people who use their brains more have less brain shrinkage,” said Valenzuela.
“I hope people take this as a further call to arms to get out there and use their brains, get engaged in anything from tai chi to world travel, in the knowledge that it may help delay or prevent the onset of dementia,” he added.
Monday, July 14, 2008
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