With an aging population worried about cognitive decline and dementia, such training programs have seen a burst in popularity in recent years.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom consumers spent an estimated $1.9 billion on digital brain health and neurotechnology apps in 2018, a fourfold increase from $475 million in 2012, according to global data from sharpbrains, an independent market-research firm.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom no magic bullet

“there will be one study that shows a benefit, but then there will be another study that fails to show a benefit,” says dan press, a neurologist and director of the cognitive-neurology unit at beth israel deaconess medical center in boston who helps run the brain fit club, a brain-training program at beth israel that incorporates activities such as tai-chi and yoga as well as nutrition education.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

An oft-cited study, dubbed ACTIVE, for advanced cognitive training for independent and vital elderly, showed that speed-of-processing training — which helps people process visual information more quickly — could cut a person’s risk of developing dementia.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom the study looked at 2,802 healthy adults, aged 65 to 94, who received training in memory, reasoning or speed of processing or were placed into a control group.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom researchers found that those in the speed-of-processing group had a 29% lower risk of developing dementia 10 years later. Researchers also found that booster sessions could be beneficial; each extra speed-training session was associated with a 10% decrease in risk.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

On the flip side, a 2018 systematic evaluation of past studies on cognitive training showed that targeting brain training to areas such as memory or processing speed could help performance in those specific areas.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom still, there wasn’t enough evidence to determine whether brain training alone could prevent or delay cognitive decline or dementia.

One major study looked at 1,260 adults 60 to 77 years old in finland with mild cognitive issues or cardiovascular risk factors like high cholesterol, hypertension or obesity — things that increase the risk of developing dementia.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom trial subjects were randomly divided into two groups: one received general health advice at the beginning of the trial, while the other received both general health advice and four additional services: nutritional counseling, a tailored exercise program, a cognitive-training program and consistent monitoring of cardiovascular risk factors.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

She began attending the brain-fitness course at her retirement center, offered by the brain fitness pavilion, a center for cognitive training that’s part of the university of miami health system.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom she worked with two programs: posit science’s brainhq, which uses computer games to help hone a person’s processing speed, attention, memory and reasoning, and i-function, a set of computer-based exercises that help people learn or relearn certain practical life skills, such as how to do their banking online or how to refill a prescription through a drugstore’s website.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom one of the more difficult levels of the brainhq speed-of-processing exercise dubbed “double decision,” where the user is tasked with identifying a specific vehicle and a specific road sign.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom extra signs appear as distractors in the periphery.

She spent an hour or two a week working through those computer exercises. One was a speed-of-processing game called “double decision,” where wisham had to simultaneously identify an object at the center of her field of view and another object in the periphery as quickly as possible.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom as her performance improved, the program would introduce the objects faster and throw in more distractions.

People who enroll in programs like those hope the exercises will keep them sharp mentally and perhaps delay or prevent the onset of dementia in old age.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom eighty-five percent of the brain fitness pavilion’s attendees are 60 or older, says its director, philip harvey, who’s also a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the university of miami miller school of medicine.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom specter of alzheimer’s

There are several causes of dementia, but the most common is alzheimer’s disease, marked by a buildup of a protein called beta amyloid in the brain and the appearance of disorganized masses of protein fibers called neurofibrillary tangles inside brain cells.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom there is no cure for alzheimer’s, and treatment options for most types of dementia are limited. There is no drug approved to prevent or delay symptoms.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

The company has worked with researchers and scientists from academic institutions for many years to evaluate its product and potential benefits.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom it’s now involved in 78 trials looking at aging, and more than 60 peer-reviewed papers on aging involving brainhq have been published so far.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom the plan is to eventually submit the research data to the FDA, but that is still years away, mahncke says. The benefits of brain training

Even though there isn’t enough evidence to definitively state that brain training can prevent or delay dementia, it does have other potential benefits.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom some studies have shown that speed training can help reduce the incidence of at-fault motor-vehicle collisions among older drivers. Others have shown that certain cognitive-training exercises can lead to improved performance in daily living activities and protect against depression.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

Lenz lock, with the global council, recommends what she calls “cognitively stimulating activities,” which challenge a person’s ability to think, such as volunteering or learning a new skill.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom she also recommends exercise and other activities that can improve cardiovascular health, something that some studies have shown can reduce the risk of developing dementia.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom