# Brain training games: No proof they prevent cognitive decline



## David Baxter PhD (Apr 10, 2015)

*Brain training games: No proof they prevent cognitive decline*
by Megan Griffith-Greene, CBC News
April 10, 2015

_Boosting your brain is a booming business, but scientists aren’t sold_

The idea of playing a game to make you sharper seems like a  no-brainer. That's the thinking behind a billion-dollar industry selling  brain training games and programs designed to boost cognitive ability.

 But an investigation by CBC's _Marketplace _reveals that brain training games such as Lumosity may not make your brain perform better in everyday life.

Almost 15 per cent of Canadians over the age of 65 are affected by  some kind of dementia. And many people of all ages are worried about  maintaining their brain health and possibly preventing a decline in  their mental abilities.

 "I don't think there's anything to say that you can train your brain to be cognitively better in the way that we know that we can train our bodies to be physically better," neuroscientist Adrian Owen told _Marketplace _co-host Tom Harrington.

*'Taking control of your own brain'*
 The  group used a training program called Lumosity, created by  California-based Lumos Labs, which describes itself as "a leader in the  science of brain training." Lumosity is one of the most popular  cognitive training programs, with 70 million members in 180 countries.

 To test how effective the games are at improving cognitive function, _Marketplace _partnered  with Owen, who holds the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Cognitive  Neuroscience and Imaging at the Brain and Mind Institute at Western  University.

A  group of 54 adults, including Harrington, did the brain training at  least three times per week for 15 minutes or more over a period of  between two and a half and four weeks. The group underwent a complete  cognitive assessment at the beginning and end of the training to see if  there had been any change as the result of the training program.

 The assessment tested performance in memory, reasoning, concentration and planning.

 At the end of the training period, researchers analyzed the results and found no significant improvement on any of the tests.

 A 2007 press  release from the company calls the games "a scientifically developed  online brain fitness program demonstrated to improve memory and  attention with fun and effective brain workouts."

 "Lumosity is a personal trainer that helps you exercise your brain," a video on the company's website says.

 Lumosity declined to speak with _Marketplace _on  camera about the investigation. In a statement, the company said: "We  cannot comment on unpublished research. Numerous studies have shown that  cognitive training, including Lumosity, improves cognitive performance.  Well designed cognitive training studies include sufficient training  time — at least 10 hours."

 The company launched in 2005.  Co-founder Michael Scanlon said he started to learn about the brain  after both his grandmothers were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

 "I  started getting excited about the possibility of leveraging your  brain's plasticity and the way it changes to make a product that people  could use and to really become more empowered about taking control of  your own brain," he said in an interview with the technology news site  TechCrunch.

*No 'magic bullet'*
 But researchers are concerned that the benefits of brain training have been overstated.

 Last  October, 70 scientists released a statement titled "A Consensus on the  Brain Training Industry from the Scientific Community," expressing  concern about the way that brain games such as Lumosity are marketed.

"We object to the  claim that brain games offer consumers a scientifically grounded avenue  to reduce or reverse cognitive decline when there is no compelling  scientific evidence to date that they do," the statement reads.

 "The  promise of a magic bullet detracts from the best evidence to date,  which is that cognitive health in old age reflects the long-term effects  of healthy, engaged lifestyles. In the judgment of the signatories,  exaggerated and misleading claims exploit the anxiety of older adults  about impending cognitive decline."

 Zachary Hambrick, professor  of cognitive neuroscience at Michigan State University, says companies  need to demonstrate that playing the games make you better at doing  everyday tasks, not just better at the games themselves.

 "What  they really need to demonstrate — in a randomized controlled trial of  the sort that a company would have to do for approval of a drug — is  that Lumosity training actually improves real-world outcomes like  performance in the classroom, the workplace, etc., and in everyday tasks  like driving, remembering to perform errands," he says.

 "In my opinion, the science so far has failed to establish that real-world relevance."

 Owen, who designed the _Marketplace _test, said that if the games had long-term effects, they would have been evident after a few weeks of training.

 "These  people have done, I think, what most people would consider a reasonable  investment of their time, they've put in quite a lot of effort; they've  done quite a bit of training. And there's not even a hint of an  effect," he said.

 Owen says the games may be fun – just don't expect them to be effective.

 "If  you enjoy playing these games, fine, play the games. But just don't do  it if you think it's making you smarter. Because I don't think the  scientific evidence supports that," says Owen.

Video: Brain training games: No proof they prevent cognitive decline


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