How To Improve Your Brain In Your 90s

There’s a popular myth that our brains finish developing at 25 (not remotely true) and from then on, stays pretty much the same with no new growth (also not true), and in terms of cognitive performance, the only way is down (have a guess whether this is true).

If you guessed “no”, you guessed correctly!

The first two myths we’ve previous covered here: Building Your Brain At Every Age

And for more about the terribly misrepresented study that inadvertently launched the “brain finishes developing at 25” myth, see: The Brain As A Work-In-Progress

Because, as the saying goes: you are not too old and it is not too late!

Always, if you are alive, then there is still time:

Age is no barrier

Literally, it’s not even a limiting factor, as shown by the latest research from Dr. Lori Cook et al., in which they followed (in the longitudinal study sense, not in the stalker sense) 3,966 people aged 19–94 for three years and found that measures of brain health improved across the lifespan, amongst participants who completed brief brain-health activities, cognitive training, lifestyle modules, and coaching, typically requiring only 5–15 minutes per day.

how brain health was measured: the study used the BrainHealth Index (BHI), combining 20ish measures (it depends on how you want to count them*) to assess the following three domains:

• Clarity: cognitive function and complex thinking abilities
• Emotional balance: mental well-being and emotional health
• Connectedness: social engagement and sense of purpose

*You can learn more about how it’s done, here: The Brain Health Index: Integrating vulnerability, resilience, and cognitive function into a unified measure of cognitive health and risk of neurodegenerative disease

What they found, in few words: overall BrainHealth Index scores improved over the 3-year period, showing that brain health can indeed be actively strengthened rather than simply maintained, even in later life. Further, improvements were seen across all age groups studied, challenging the common assumption that cognitive decline is an unavoidable consequence of aging.

In fact, the strongest predictor of improvement wasn’t anything that already been determined at the start (e.g. age, sex, or education level)—it was how actively participants engaged with the training tools, coaching, and brain-healthy habits.

One of the co-authors of the study is a scientist we’ve featured before in our “Expert Insights” segment, and in this case she noted:

❝This study reminds us that our brain is not defined by age—it is defined by possibility❞

~ Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman, whom we previously featured in: How (And Why) To Train Your Pre-Frontal Cortex

As for this latest study and more about what specific things they did, you can read it in detail, here: Measuring and increasing the brain health span across adulthood: a public health imperative

Want to learn more?

As for how to do it for yourself, consider:

• Do Try This At Home: The 12-Week Brain Fitness Program
• Synergistic Brain-Training
• The Physical Exercises That Build Your Brain
• Sharper Minder & Body In 3 Weeks With 1 Supplement
• Seven Exercises To Strengthen Your Brain
• Ways To Boost Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF)
• Reading As A Cognitive Exercise ← there are specific tips here for ensuring your reading is (and remains) cognitively beneficial

Take care!