Brain training: It doesn't work

A decade ago, a Swedish researcher published a study that seemed to indicate that training your brain in one area (e.g. memorizing strings of numbers) would have positive effects in other areas (e.g. playing chess). The implication was that intelligence wasn't a fixed quality; that it was, in the New Yorker's words, "less like eye color and more like a muscle."

Since then, countless entrepreneurs have marketed simplistic "brain training" programs with the promise that getting better at (say) Sudoku will help you (say) perform better at work. But a recent meta-study of all the scientific data on this phenomenon has come to the irrefutable conclusion that learning how to play a game only improves your ability to play that game. In other words, programs like Lumosity and Cogmed are just bilking their users of cash, without providing the benefits that they promise.

Worse still, other studies of the original data have found severe methodological problems with the studies. Put simply, the data was being skewed (by things like using poor controls, a narrow definition of "success," and secretly scuttling the results of studies that didn't pan out) in order to show positive results.

Whether or not this constitutes outright fraud is left as an exercise for the reader. But it's worth noting that the original Swedish researcher who launched this trend went on to found a billion-dollar company (Cogmed) that sells the promise of brain training.

Does this mean you should stop doing crossword and Sudoku puzzles? No - they're a fun little distraction, and they certainly don't hurt. But be realistic about the costs, both of subscription services like Lumosity, and the opportunity cost (what else you could be doing with your time).

Are there any proven ways to increase your overall cognitive performance? Absolutely:

1. Eat a healthy diet with a wide variety of nutritional sources, including plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables.

2. Get enough sleep every night - most Americans are operating with a chronic sleep deficit, which is notorious for impairing your mental functioning.

3. Exercise regularly. Even a short walk can improve blood flow throughout your body, including your brain.

Image courtesy Flickr/giulia.forsythe