- Trial over 20 years shows brain speed training cuts dementia risk by 25 percent
- Study tracked 2,000 adults aged 65+ and published in Alzheimers & Dementia journal
- Speed training involved quick symbol recognition improving attention and decision-making
A trial that lasted for 20 years found that specific brain-training exercises can significantly reduce the risk of dementia in older adults. The study, which tracked over 2,000 participants aged 65 and above, revealed that speed training, in particular, showed promising results. The findings of the trial were published in Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research and Clinical Interventions.
The risk of developing Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia becomes high as people age, especially in their 80s and 90s. So far, there's no cure, but researchers are exploring interventions to reduce the risks.
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The study, which began in the late 1990s, found that participants who underwent speed training and booster sessions had a 25% lower risk of developing dementia over 20 years. The speed training was adaptive, becoming progressively more challenging as participants improved.
They also found that memory and reasoning training did not show a statistically significant reduction in dementia risk.
"If you were in the speed training group and you had the booster sessions, you had a 25% lower risk of having a diagnosis of dementia [by the end of the trial]," study co-author Marilyn Albert, a neuroscientist at John Hopkins University, said as quoted by Live Science.
The speed training exercise involves quickly identifying shapes or symbols on a computer screen, enhancing visual processing and attention. This type of training may strengthen brain networks supporting attention and decision-making.
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While the results are promising, experts caution that more research is needed to understand the full impact of brain training on dementia prevention.
"There are hundreds of those that exist in the marketplace" and claim to be designed to boost brain health, Kramer said.
"When these things get commercial, sometimes people make claims that go beyond the data, so you always worry about that."
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