The Power of Brain Games: A Guide to Mental Fitness

What Are Brain Games?

It's no news to anyone that you can learn through games, people of different ages turn to digital and traditional tools to learn something new and consolidate the old. 

Such games are developed specifically to improve our thinking abilities and various cognitive skills, and even students from different focus groups use them to increase their memory capacity.

They work by stimulating different areas of the brain, facilitating the formation of new connections between neurons and strengthening existing ones. 

The concept of neuroplasticity is a fundamental principle explaining the effectiveness of games for the brain, and for a long time many people believed that the human brain is fully developed at a certain age and cannot change much after that. 

However, scientific research has shown that the brain can rebuild itself, forming new neural connections throughout life. For this reason, people who have suffered a stroke can sometimes relearn how to walk or talk, as their brains find new ways to perform these functions. 

Different Types of Brain Games

Logic Puzzles

Logic puzzles are very popular, Sudoku and nonograms require deductive thinking and careful analysis to find the right numbers or patterns without resorting to guesswork. 

For example, in a Sudoku puzzle, you have to look through several rows and columns to find the only missing number and force your brain to analyze large amounts of information and apply logical rules to narrow down the possibilities.

Strategy Games

In chess and Go, players think through many moves in advance, anticipate what your opponent will do, and plan their actions accordingly, and by playing these games, you can significantly develop your abilities for planning, foresight, and strategic thinking. 

The so-called "executive function" is a set of mental skills that help you complete tasks.

Memory and Word Games

There are also memory games, these simple-looking games are great for training short-term and working memory and help you better hold information in your mind and quickly retrieve it when you need it. Working memory allows you to save information and manipulate it for a short period of time. 

Word games, including crosswords and Scrabble, also greatly expand vocabulary and the ability to extract words from memory. 

In addition, the digital age has brought us many different brain training apps on phones and computers, which often offer a combination of these different types of puzzles in a structured and progressive way, allowing you to track your progress and work on specific skills like attention or reaction speed.

The Specifics of the Games

The Game of Chess

In addition to the fact that you develop patience, because victories do not come immediately and with experience, you learn to look into the future at least so as not to lose. And the most unobvious advice: try to play with those who are better. It would seem that dopamine will be produced from winnings, but this is not exactly what is needed, players play on excitement, because it can only be interesting in a difficult game.

The game is usually divided into three parts: the beginning, the middle and the ending. Each part requires a special approach. In the opening, you have to memorize specific lines and ideas. In the middle of the game, you need to find creative solutions to the problems on the board. In the endgame, you need to use precise calculations.

The Logic of Sudoku

In Sudoku, you have to look at rows, columns, and smaller squares at the same time to determine where the same number might be. You have to concentrate on a lot of different rules at the same time to solve the puzzle correctly. You have a set of rules, and you have to find the only possible solution that satisfies all of them.

The Benefits of Crosswords

To solve the crossword puzzle, you must recall the words and their meanings from your long-term memory, which helps to keep your memory sharp and expand your vocabulary. 

You need to read and try to remember everything possible, all the random and specially acquired knowledge. You've probably seen how older people often solve the crossword puzzle, and this is not a marker of old age, it develops erudition and prevents dementia.

Brain Fitness in Everyday Life

• Mastering a new skill, such as playing a musical instrument or drawing, requires your brain to master new movements, new patterns, and new information, which is a very effective way to increase neuroplasticity.

• Reading an interesting book is another great way to occupy your mind, because when you read, you not only acquire knowledge, but also use your imagination, process complex ideas and form a deeper understanding of the world.

• Talking about difficult topics with a friend.

• Trying to cook something according to a new recipe without following the exact instructions.

• Traveling to new places and trying to navigate unfamiliar cities forces your brain to create new mental maps and adapt to different situations.

• Learning a new language strengthens your memory, improves your problem-solving skills, and may even delay the onset of some age-related cognitive decline.

Mind Elevate Brain Games and Disease Prevention

Although it is important to remember that mind games are not a magic cure for any disease, many scientific studies show that keeping the mind active can help reduce the risk of certain age-related cognitive problems. 

The cognitive reserve concept states that the more you recall old information, the more connections and paths it builds. For example, if you read a book in your youth, try to solve a quiz on the topic of this book, thereby strengthening neural connections 

Studies of diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia have shown a link between high levels of mental activity and a lower risk of developing these conditions. People who have spent their entire lives engaged in mental activity, reading, or playing games and puzzles often show symptoms later than those who have not. 

This does not mean that intellectual games via the Mind Elevate app can completely prevent the occurrence of these diseases, but they can complement general therapy.

The "use it or lose it" principle really applies here: the more you use your brain, the more capable it becomes.

To sum up, the most important thing is to find activities that you enjoy so that you have a better chance of continuing to do them regularly, that is, solving puzzles, playing a strategy game, or just learning something new every day should not be an effort, it is important that you personally enjoy it. 

By making a conscious effort to incorporate these activities into our lives, we can help ensure that our brains remain active and healthy for many years to come.