Why Brain Games?

Steps to a nimble mind: Physical and mental exercise help keep the brain fit

Neuroscience is uncovering techniques to prevent cognitive decline.

By Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli, amednews correspondent. Nov. 17, 2008.

The brain -- containing 100 billion neurons, 900 billion glial cells, 100 trillion branches and 1,000 trillion receptors -- reacts to stimuli in a series of electrical bursts, spanning a complex map of connections. Whether calculating an algorithmic equation or learning the tango, our brain continuously changes in response to our ideas, actions and activities.

Each time a dance step is learned, for instance, new pathways are formed. "Dancing is excellent for the brain and body," says Vincent Fortanasce, MD, clinical professor of neurology at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. He wrote the Anti-Alzheimer's Prescription. "Not only are you moving around more, your brain is in constant motion as it recalls steps and movements." (read complete article )

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