Study: Reading, Writing Slow Dementia

A new study has found that reading and writing throughout old age can slow down dementia.

The researchers examined the brains of 300 older adults who were given annual memory and thinking tests for about six years. The participants also answered questions about whether they read, wrote and participated in other mentally stimulating activities throughout their lives. The researchers found that the brains of the adults who stimulated their minds had fewer physical signs of dementia, such as lesions, plaques and tangles.

The participants who were mentally active late in life saw a rate of decline that was reduced by 32 percent. Those with infrequent activity experienced a decline 48 percent faster.

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