A fight has broken out among scientific researchers over whether or not brain training beats back the effects of aging. As a 58-year-old boomer whose work as a journalist depends on staying one step ahead of Gen-Xers, millennials, preschoolers and other would-be assassins, I’ve followed the debate closely.
Not that my brain is “aging.” I mean, not yet. Aging is what’s happening to my mom. She’s 86. She’s old!
So, is there any hope for her and others who, unlike me, are aging?
One group of academics released a statement two years ago saying they see “no compelling scientific evidence” that brain exercises “offer consumers a scientifically grounded avenue to reduce or reverse cognitive decline.” Shortly after, a response came from another group, who insisted the first group ignored the evidence from 132 peer-reviewed studies.
Score: skeptics 1, believers 1.
Next came two well-designed, randomized trials. The first, published in ...
