TechCrunch reports today that start-up Lumos Labs has raised $3m to develop brain training games.
From the press release:
"Lumos Labs is at the center of a booming interest in cognitive exercise and the emerging science about the remarkable plasticity of the brain," said Amish Jani of Pequot Ventures.
Consumers, educators and health professionals will be reading more and more about programs like Posit Science, Dakim, Cogmed, Fast ForWord, MindFit, Lumosity, Happy Neuron, FitBrains, MyBrainTrainer, and more. The bad news is that it is difficult to separate marketing from scientific claims, and to understand which program, if any, may be a good complement to other healthy lifestyle choices.
The reality is that, in this emerging field, no single company or product has an overwhelming amount of efficacy research behind. There is no General Solution, but useful tools for specific groups of people with specific goals, and budgets.
Let me address some typical questions:
Do these programs cure Alzheimer's? No program can claim that it specifically delays or prevents Alzheimer's disease beyond general statements, such as that mental stimulation together with other lifestyle factors (nutrition, physical exercise and stress management) can contribute toward building a cognitive reserve that may reduce the probability of Alzheimer's-related symptoms.
What can brain training do? Human cognitive abilities evolve in a variety of ways with aging. Some improve, such as pattern recognition and emotional self-regulation; some decline, for example, speed of processing, working memory and novel problem-solving. Certain mental abilities have proved to be trainable, though, and this provides the opportunity to improve brain performance and quality of life, potentially prolonging one's independence and autonomy.
How do I evaluate whether any program is good for me or my clients, patients or residents? Ask what cognitive skills you want trained. Some programs present the benefits in such a nebulous way that it is impossible to tell whether or not they will yield any results. The general wording "Brain training" itself is of limited benefit because such activities as gardening or learning a new language "train" the brain, too. One must ask whether an improvement experienced in a brain training program will transfer to real life, and usually that happens when a person trains the cognitive skill or skills that are specifically relevant-there are no general solutions to all problems. Assessments are needed that are distinct from the exercises. Last year, SharpBrains. released a 10-question checklist to help people evaluate the growing number of programs making brain-related claims. You can download a complimentary copy here (PDF).
Is this just a fad that will soon vanish, or a first wave of many? I believe technology is emerging as a welcome tool for evaluating and training specific brain functions, and this will enable the increasingly rapid growth of a cognitive fitness field that can parallel physical fitness.
Now, what do you think?
Note: sections of this article are adapted from a Feature In Focus article and reprinted with permission from the American Society on Aging.
Follow Alvaro Fernandez on Twitter: www.twitter.com/alvarof
So the next time you want to do something good for your brain -- take a walk.
Contrary to popular belief, cognitive decline is not inevitable as a person ages. One important factor seems to be that people who believe they have control over their lives tend to be happier and in better health than those that feel they are at the mercy of forces beyond their control. The reason for this seems to be that those who feel they have some control over their lives will take steps to ward off decline in memory and intellectual functioning more often than those who feel their efforts will come to nothing. In addition, many people who feel they are declining and can do nothing about it often feel greater levels of stress and anxiety, which in turn can interfere with cognitive functioning.
The steps to ward off cognitive decline and keep your brain healthy appear to be deceptively simple: eat well, know your numbers (blood pressure, cholesterol, weight, etc), exercise daily, spend time with friends and loved ones, learn something new, and keep your levels of stress down.
Easier said than done, no?
Corporate research and corporate claims are not reliable. The cigarette companies said for decades that research proved tobacco was safe. The oil companies claim they are working on green solutions, and that they don't overcharge consumers. And software companies claim to have evidence that they can rewire your brain. Why would they lie?
It's just sales. You can get the same benefits from a book of sudoku and a Mozart CD.
2) Thinking that "You can get the same benefits from a book of sudoku and a Mozart CD." won't serve you well, because that is simply not the case, as shown by what you call "university research".
I encourage you to visit our Neuroscience Interview Series to better understand what is happening
http://www.sharpbrains.com/resources/neuroscience-interview-series/
And take a look at the Checklist linked above to evaluate claims you may see. It may help you navigate through the growing offer.
What I'm waiting to see is brain training that proves it can go beyond the narrow gains related directly to the activity to broader gains in IQ, reading comprehension, working memory, long-term memory, focus or some other global cognitive ability.
For example, showing that a subject's processing speed has increased on a certain video-game type activity hasn't been shown to effect a general improvement in processing speed.
I think it's possible. Such a product may already be out there—though I know of several contenders that are pure hype (like the Mozart story). In the meantime, I hope sites like sharpbrains will help regular people discriminate between the genuine and the bogus. If all such sites were operated along the lines of a peer-edited journal, with transparency regarding financial connections, maybe it would help point individuals and school districts toward the useful, and help them avoid the useless.