Video Games Better Than Crosswords for Slowing/Reversing Declines in Brain Function

A Wall Street Journal article reported on a government-funded study that found that playing
Double Decision can slow and even reverse declines in brain function
associated with aging, while playing crossword puzzles cannot. 

Despite promising study results, WSJ reports that
some doctors say there still isn’t enough evidence to prove such
exercises will help people in everyday life.

The latest study on this topic, called the Iowa
Healthy and Active Minds Study was a randomized controlled trial involving 681
healthy people. Participants were divided into two age groups—from 50 to
64, and 65 and over. People in each group were assigned either to play
Road Tour, which has since been renamed Double Decision, or to do
computerized crossword puzzles.

Double Decision briefly displays an image of a vehicle and a
particular road sign. As the screen continually shifts, and assorted
vehicles and road signs come and go, players must watch out for and
identify the particular vehicle and sign that appeared at the game’s
start. The game becomes more challenging as players advance levels.
Before beginning the study, participants were
given standard cognitive tests, many involving executive-function tasks
such as concentration and shifting from one mental task to another. The same tests were administered a year later. People assigned to do
crossword puzzles showed typical cognitive one-year declines. But the groups who played the computer game showed a
clear improvement compared with the normal loss of cognitive function as
people age. The amount of improvement ranged from two to seven years.