| Playing Scrabble or other "thinking" board games is | | | | activity. It found that a brain region known as the |
| being shown by modern medical science to have | | | | hippocampus, known to shrink with age and |
| many health benefits. No matter what your age, | | | | particularly with these three degenerative brain |
| "brain sports" such as Scrabble have been proven to | | | | diseases, has only half the rate of shrinkage in people |
| be of particular benefit for many aspects of human | | | | engaged in active mental tasks as in those with low |
| mental health. | | | | levels of mental stimulation. |
| At the simplest and most obvious end of the | | | | The evidence suggests a "Use it or Lose it" basis to |
| spectrum, the social aspects of Scrabble and other | | | | human cognitive health. |
| board games can be a preventative or even a | | | | If it is too late for prevention, research from the |
| treatment for loneliness, depression and social phobia. | | | | University of Pittsburgh Medical Center that has been |
| At the other end of the spectrum, a study from the | | | | published in the "Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery |
| University of Southern California and published in the | | | | and Psychiatry" still has some encouraging news. |
| respected "Journal of Gerontology: Psychological | | | | They have demonstrated that computer and internet |
| Sciences" shows that mentally stimulating recreational | | | | based mentally stimulating activities such as games |
| activities in early and middle adulthood is strongly | | | | can play a useful role alongside medication in |
| associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer's Disease | | | | improving the cognitive function of Alzheimer's |
| in later life. | | | | patients. That is another plus for Scrabble, the |
| A similar study by the National Institutes of Health's | | | | various internet versions of which have grown the |
| National Institute on Aging in 2002 studied 700 | | | | game into one of the most popular online today. |
| dementia-free people aged 65 and older for a period | | | | Irrespective of Alzheimer's Disease or other form of |
| of 4.5 years. It compared the level of active | | | | dementia, cognitive decline is a very common |
| cognitive activities regularly performed by the study | | | | phenomena as we advance in years. Medical research |
| participants, such as card games, checkers, | | | | teaches us clearly that keeping one's brain active with |
| crossword puzzles, reading books and visiting | | | | puzzles, games, study and similar means are an |
| museums. The NIH reached a conclusion that those | | | | effective method of slowing the rate of age-related |
| with the highest levels of cognitive activities in their | | | | cognitive decline. Furthermore, the earlier in life one |
| lifestyle had a 47% reduced risk of future Alzheimer's | | | | begins to regularly participate in such active brain |
| disease than those who had the least levels of | | | | games and pursuits, the longer it takes before any |
| cognitive activities in the lifestyles. | | | | cognitive decline even begins. |
| A 2008 study by the University of NSW published in | | | | The lesson is clear. Play Scrabble and other |
| the renown journal "Public Library of Science" adds | | | | brain-games regularly to enhance and maintain your |
| that, in addition to Alzheimer's Disease, the onset of | | | | overall mental health throughout life, and to help |
| other degenerative brain diseases such as | | | | prevent Alzheimer's Disease or other forms of |
| Huntington's and Parkinson's Diseases can also be | | | | age-related cognitive decline in your later life. |
| delayed or prevented with these forms of mental | | | | |