Brain-fitness games can sharpen mental muscles for all ages

One of the smartest gifts you can give this Christmas requires the recipient to flex his or her cranium.

Brain fitness games - video games designed to improve one's cognitive abilities through mental exercises - are enormously popular these days, fueled in part by an aging baby boomer population obsessed with good health and fearful of memory loss and dementia.

"It's similar to going to a health club and deciding you want to work on your biceps or your abdomen," says Alvaro Fernandez, a neuroscientist and co-founder of SharpBrains, an independent science-based clearinghouse that evaluates brain fitness games.

In 2008, individual consumers made up more than a third of the $26.5 million brain fitness software market that uses computers, video game systems and handheld devices. That number is remarkable in that there was virtually nothing marketed for at-home, grownup brain building just three years earlier.

In the past, the market was pretty much limited to the military, schools and corporations. But now, there's everything from "Brain Age," Nintendo's handheld game that tosses Sudoku and math puzzles at you, to "Civilization," a historical critical thinking adventure.

But with this explosive popularity comes the concern that brain-goosing games or foods or supplements are just a lot of flash and very little substance. Can claims that you'll "train your brain in minutes a day" and "boost problem-solving ability by 40 percent" really be true?

Probably not.

"There is absolutely no way to double your brain power," says Fernandez, co-author of "The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness" ($19.95, SharpBrains). "It's not that these products are bad. But they offer no science to show that it works."

Brain fitness requires more than memory games and mental stimulation. It also involves nutrition, physical fitness and stress management, Fernandez says. Studies also have shown that socialization is important.

And the brain's needs vary according to age, gender and mental demands. That's the case, of course, regardless of whether the game is on a computer or in a puzzle book. People of all ages can benefit from old-school games and new technology as long as the players don't get into a rut repeating the same activity.

"If we just do it over and over again, it has a limited value," Fernandez says.

But there are benefits to be had from some computer games. Fernandez offered a few suggestions for those who want to select a program for themselves or a loved one:

Kids

The focus for brain health is the same as overall health -- kids need good nutrition and aerobic exercise.

Good toys incorporate these concepts with activities kids already love, such as video games. Top toys could include something like the Nintendo Wii, which requires players to stand and move about to play the game. An added bonus: It's popular with people of all generations. A game system runs about $200.

"If I were Santa Claus, I would be very proud to give that, and see a child playing it with their grandparents," Fernandez says.

Working adults

Stress management is critical at this busy time of life, but it's an oft-neglected area of brain fitness.

Fernandez says the best exercises blend mental challenges with meditation and other calming practices. Even better are ones that offer biofeedback, immediate reads on body functions such as blood pressure and heart rate, so the user can adapt and improve.

One example: "Journey to the Wild Divine" ($299.95 at www.wilddivine.com). It's part fantasy game, part health assessment and part meditation class with New Age heavyweights such as Deepak Chopra. Finger sensors you wear while playing the game actually help you learn how to relax.

Women, in particular, will respond to these stress-busting games, Fernandez says.

Older adults

Teaching an old dog new tricks is critical for older adults who want to get their brains moving, Fernandez says.

Computer games are a good choice because older adults aren't as familiar or adept with them as say, crossword puzzles. Strategy games, such as Microsoft's "Rise of Nations" have been found to have positive results in tests with adults 60 and older, Fernandez says.

Practical skill-based computer games also can make a difference, such as Posit Science's "Drive Sharp" ($89, www.positscience.com). And this game meets one of SharpBrains' key criteria for good exercise: It targets specific brain function. In this case, it works on visual skills, such as tracking multiple objects and assessing smaller objects.

BE A SHREWD SHOPPER

People looking to select a book or interactive game aimed at brain fitness should ask:

• Is the program based on published scientific evidence you can read for yourself?

• Does it claim to provide specific benefits, and if so, what skill or part of the brain is being exercised?

• Are you learning something new? Are you challenged, or just being entertained?

• Does this fit your personal goals and commitment?

Source: SharpBrains.com