Games and Puzzles: Food for a Healthy Mind for the Elderly

Games have a long history of sharpening the mind in children and adolescents and ensuring a fun time. However, do games help in decelerating cognitive impairment in older adults or prevent any age-related issues?
Commonly, games such as puzzles, memory games, word games, etc. provide stimulation to the mind that may delay cognitive decline amongst the elderly. Engaging in activities on a daily basis could instill a sense of achievement, satisfaction, and sharpen cognitive skills.

Research conducted within this area has shown that keeping the brain fit through mind-stimulating activities and games could eventually reduce the onset or development of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and prevent mental health conditions such as Depression.
Recently, two studies conducted in 2018 and 2019 within the UK, aimed to look at the positive effects of puzzles and number puzzles among the older population. The studies discovered that older people, who regularly did puzzles had sharper short-term memory aptitudes, in addition to verbal reasoning similar to individuals of a much younger age. Meanwhile, the 2018 study showcased a stronger relationship between persistent use of puzzles among older individuals, aged 50 and over, and the quality of their cognitive functioning.

The most common benefits of engaging in games are:
● Helping in attention and focus
● Aiding stress
● Improving sleep patterns
● Enhancing short-term memory
● Boosting decision-making and bettering comprehension
● May hone skills such as attention to detail and reasoning
● Improving mood
● When using a pen or shifting pieces of the puzzle fingers can be exercised as well.
● Develop new social relationships
● Enhancing visual and spatial perception
● Improving concentration

Drawing upon these benefits, an event was organized by Samvedna Care in collaboration with Anoobhuti Learning Solutions at our activity centre to fuel the mind of healthy and active older adults. This was an intergenerational event where we invited seniors and their families, especially grandchildren, to take part in mind-stimulating games and activities. The event also helped strengthen the bond between families, while fostering new relationships with other older adults. The response to the event was incredible. The various games included brain stimulation, language enhancement and memory recall. The elderlies were observed having a great time during the event and enjoyed forming new social connections with other participants. Overall, the aim of the event exceeded expectations, as the feedback was highly positive. Samvedna looks forward to cultivating such events more frequently in the future.

Mind-Stimulating Games and Activities at Samvedna Senior Care