Doing plenty of mentally-stimulating activities - such as playing chess, reading a newspaper, or attending a play - in old age helps reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study of more than 700 elderly people.
The Chicago residents, who averaged 80 years of age at the start of the study, underwent annual cognitive testing for up to five years. During the study, 90 people developed Alzheimer's disease, and 102 died.
However, the Rush University Medical Centre researchers found that those who were "cognitively active" were 2.6 times less likely than those who got minimal mental stimulation to develop Alzheimer's disease. The study, published in current issue of the journal Neurology, also found that frequent mental stimulation was associated with a reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment - a transitional stage between normal aging and dementia - and less rapid decline in cognitive function.
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