Video game sharpens up elderly brains

Adults over 60 who played for several hours a month beat untrained 20-year-olds in racing game

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Playing a car-racing video game boosted older adults’ brainpower, scientists report in the Sept. 5 Nature. The results suggest that brain training games might stave off mental decline that comes with age.

Cognitive neuroscientist Adam Gazzaley of the University of California, San Francisco and colleagues created a video game called NeuroRacer. Participants drove a car on a narrow, windy road and distracting signs popped up. Older people were worse at the game than younger people, the team found.

But after playing for 12 hours over a month, volunteers between ages 60 and 85 got so good at the game that they beat 20-year-olds playing it for the first time. And the benefits stayed for at least 6 months, even though the older volunteers had stopped playing NeuroRacer.

WORKING MEMORY A lab-designed video game called NeuroRacer helped older volunteers improve their memory and attention. The Gazzaley Lab

Other mental functions also improved: Lab tests revealed that participants’ working memory increased, as did attention.

The NeuroRacer video game challenges drivers to pilot a car on a windy road while looking out for signs. Playing the game boosted older adults’ memory and attention.
Credit: The Gazzaley Lab

Laura Sanders is the neuroscience writer. She holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Southern California.

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