Use it or lose it” holds true for the brain as much as for other parts of the body, say researchers who found older people who were trained on brain exercises stayed mentally fit for at least five years.

In Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association, Sherry Willis, a human-development professor at Penn State University, and her colleagues describe the results of brain training sessions. They studied nearly 3,000 people with an average age of 73 when the study began.

The training included hour-long classes over six weeks and exercises done on a computer. Researchers focused on three abilities: memory, reasoning and speed of processing.

Lessons included learning to:

Categorize items on a grocery list to make them easier to remember and locate.
Look for patterns in bus schedules to sharpen reasoning skills.
Quickly identify flashing objects on a computer screen to boost reaction times, such as when driving.
It is unclear whether exercising the brain at home by doing crossword puzzles or making crafts would show similar benefits, although previous studies have shown the activities can help the aging brain to stay sharp.

“Older adults really can continue to exercise mentally and to improve their cognitive abilities,” said Willis. “But it does take work. It’s just like physical exercise, you have to do it consistently and diligently.”

After training, participants who received the reasoning training showed better scores than those who did not receive any training but were still tested.

Much of the benefit lasted for five years after the lessons, and people who took the classes reported feeling better about how they functioned at daily activities such as driving or shopping.

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