Use It So You Don’t Lose It

You can maintain cognitive capabilities as you age according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study entitled: The Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly or ACTIVE found that community-dwelling seniors who received cognitive training had less of a decline in certain thinking skills than their peers who did not have the training.

Three groups received specialized training. One group focused on memory, the second on reasoning and the third on speed of processing information. A fourth group received no training. Members of the first three groups increased their cognitive skills, even five years after the training ended.

“The challenge now is to further examine these interventions and others to see how they can be employed in real-world settings,” says NIA Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D. The lesson is clear—use it so you don’t lose it.

For more information, visit the National Institutes of Health.