Can Brain Training Give Your Mental Wellness a Boost?

If you’re nearing middle age, whether you’d like to admit it or not, you’ve probably started to notice that your memory and mental clarity are not what they used to be. Out of nowhere, you start forgetting where you put your keys, or the name of an old friend or a band you used to love. You jokingly refer to these incidences as ‘senior moments,’ but while they seem like an innocent and inevitable part of growing older, this loss of mental focus can potentially have a detrimental impact on your mental wellness, as well as your professional, social, and personal wellbeing.

According to an increasing number of studies from neuroscientists, senior moments happen to everyone but there are actually many things that can be done about them. Your brain needs exercise just like your muscles do, and by doing the right kinds of mental workouts you can significantly boost your brain power and basic cognitive functions. But how?

When you think, you’re essentially making neural connections in the brain. It is your ability to make these neural connections that drives your intelligence and, to a certain extent, this ability is inherited. However, these connections are made through effort and practice, which means that, according to leading scientists and neuro-wellness experts, intelligence can expand and fluctuate according to mental effort.

A new San Francisco Web-based company has taken this idea and turned it into the first ‘brain training programme.’ Dubbed Lumosity, the programme has been developed with the view of helping you to actually improve and regain your mental sharpness. Lumosity was designed by some of the leading experts in neuroscience and cognitive psychology from Stanford University, who assert that the programme is far more than an online place to exercise your mental skills.

By integrating memory exercises into a Web-based programme, the Lumosity developers have allowed you to systematically improve your memory and attention skills. The programme does this by keeping track of your progress and providing detailed feedback on your performance and improvement.  Further, and perhaps most importantly of all, it provides constant modification and enhancement of the games you play so that you can continue to develop your memory strengths – just like how you change up your exercise routine to make sure you always get the benefit.

During one of its randomised, controlled clinical trials, six-weeks use of Lumosity was shown to improve student scores on math tests by 34%. According to the company, users of the programme have reported clearer and quicker thinking, improved memory for names, numbers, directions, increased alertness and awareness, elevated mood, and better concentration at work or while driving.