Individuals who play more puzzle games are less likely to develop dementia.

Question

According to the link below, individuals who completed word or numerical puzzles at least once a month performed much better across all cognitive domains than those who did not, and measures of attention were greatest in those who did puzzles the most frequently. So the individuals who play more puzzle games are less likely to develop dementia.

Answer 1

The National Library of Medicine has a journal article that relates crosswords to slowing the development of dementia. This journal article was written following a scientific study that proved crossword participation delayed dementia by 2.54 years. According to the authors, "Inclusion of education or participation in other cognitively stimulating activities did not significantly add to the fit of the model beyond the effect of puzzles." Their article went into some of the more specific aspects of how crosswords actually help.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3885259/

In this other article, by a doctor with the Cognitive Vitality company, had similar findings to the first source. Both the World Health Organization and Global Council on Brain Health agreed that supplements are not effective, but mentally stimulating activities can be very beneficial. Their study allowed participants to rank themselves in six different categories depending on how often they did these puzzles. Those who did them once were significantly better than those who used none at all. The type of puzzle also affected their scores. Those who did word puzzles ranked better with grammatical reasoning, and those who did number puzzles were better with executive functions. The article concluded with, "...which suggests that similar to education, mentally stimulating activities may help delay the onset of symptoms, but on their own they cannot prevent dementia." This study does not guarantee that puzzles can help, but does agree that they are better than supplements or doing nothing at all.

https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/blog/can-a-puzzle-a-day-keep-dementia-at-bay

Answer 2

This is true. Studies and research have found that playing puzzle games may delay the onset of the early stages of dementia. In the following study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3885259/  researchers explained "that late life crossword puzzle participation, independent of education, was associated with delayed onset of memory decline in persons who developed dementia." 

This study is published by a very reputable journal, and is a reputable source proving your statement as correct. 

Answer 3

According to the National library of medicine, "People who reported often playing board games, reading, playing a musical instrument or doing crossword puzzles were less likely to develop dementia than people who said they engaged in those activities only rarely".

Therefore, not every method of games, etc. can help reduce the likelihood of developing dementia, But, the active and continuous method of challenging one's mental capacity and memory have been found effective.

This is a reputable source provided by the National library of medicine.

Comments

Don't forget to add hyperlinks for each source going forward.

Answer 4

There was a study done, published in the “Archives of Neurology” that compared the brains of those 76 and 25. Some of the older individuals had Alzheimer’s. They also looked at the activities the older people participated in when they were younger. What they found was those who did puzzles or brain stimulating activities in their younger/middle years had the same brain health as those 50 years younger than them. 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alzheimers-brain-plaques-prevented-by-lifetime-of-puzzles-study-suggests/#textThe20study20found20people20whoare20tied20to20Alzheimers20disease

Answer 5

This claim is true, puzzles improve brain functions and provide memory exercise. According to The Missing Piece Puzzle Company "in any stage of Dementia or Alzheimer's, puzzles are said to ease some of the symptoms and provide stimulating comfort to the patients, as well as provide a sense of control." Puzzles also help those patients who tend to lose interest in things fairly quickly, they stabilize the decline. 

https://themissingpiecepuzzle.com/blogs/jigsaw-puzzle-talk/dementia-and-jigsaw-puzzles

Answer 6

According to an article written by Mutshurio Nakao "Special series on "effects of board games on health education and promotion" Board games as a promising tool for health promotion: a review a promising tool for health promotion" It is true that individuals who play board games are less likely to develop dementia. Nakao states in his article that the risk of dementia was 15% lower in board games than in non-players. Board game players also experienced less decline in mini mental state examinations. 

Source: https://bpsmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13030-019-0146-3

Answer 7

According to the National Institute of Health,  participating in cognitively stimulating leisure activities such as crossword puzzles may delay the onset of memory decline in the preclinical stages of dementia. The association they cite states it is because the activity can improve cognitive reserve.

It is important to note, however, not all studies have found these associations. They specifically note that although attempting to solve crossword puzzles is frequently mentioned and recommended in the popular press as a mentally stimulating activity, there is surprisingly little factual support for their role in influencing the rate of cognitive aging.

There is yet enough evidence to state firmly that puzzles do indeed lead to people being less likely to develop dementia. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3885259/ 

Comments

I see how one may believe the claim is true. It seems there is evidence to support both that the claim is true and also potentially unproven among all studies, since there have been varied resutls.

Answer 8

There has been sufficient evidence to prove that this claim is true. According to a website by Cognitive Vitality, engaging in mentally stimulating activities can lead to more resistance in later cognitive decline.

The article explained an observational study that examined the association between cognition and word or number puzzle use. The study used 19,078 healthy adults in the UK between the ages of 50 and 93. The article states, "Those who did word or number puzzles at least once a month showed significantly better performance across all cognitive domains compared to those who never used them, and measures of attention were highest in the people who did puzzles most frequently."

This example, along with a lot of other evidence, can conclude that brain games like puzzles can help to slow down cognitive decline, therefore making a person less likely to develop dementia or Alzheimers.

Source: alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/blog/can-a-puzzle-a-day-keep-dementia-at-bay

Answer 9

This is true, as puzzles are described as being good for our brains.

"Researchers determined that, out of participants who eventually developed dementia, those who frequently did crossword puzzles demonstrated a much slower decline in memory. On average, crossword puzzles provided about a two and a half year delay in memory decline compared to those who did not do crossword puzzles," said journalists at Very Well Health.

Other studies are provided data stating that other mental activities such as reading, playing cards, playing board games, and practicing musical instruments were also associated with a decreased risk of dementia.

Staying mentally active will ultimately reduce your risk of dementia because you are challenging yourself.

https://www.verywellhealth.com/do-crossword-puzzles-prevent-dementia-98429

Answer 10

There does appear to be an assosiation between doing puzzles as well as other brain games with improving brain capacities. All studies done in relation to dementia prevention have been observational meaning cause and effect can not be fully determined. But because there is a clear connection between brain games and cognition, it would be fair to say that puzzles and other games can be preventative of dementia.

https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/blog/can-a-puzzle-a-day-keep-dementia-at-bay