A soon-to-be-published study coming out of UCSF is claiming to reveal a direct link between brain training through a cognitive fitness program and improved mental functioning in day to day life. This particular study targeted working visual memory – something we are using on a constant basis in our everyday lives – and found that this skill improved nearly 10% in the period following the training. From the lead researcher, Adam Gazzaley, MD, PhD, director of the Neuroscience Imaging Center at UCSF :

“This confirms our understanding that the brains of older adults, like those of young people, are ‘plastic’ – the brain can change in response to focused training”
“The study shows that perceptual improvements with simple discrimination training can transfer to improved working memory in older adults, and it also shows that this increase in memory accuracy is linked to changes at the neural level.”