Things you may have wanted to know...

Do books improve your mind??

     We all learn to read, but what happens in adult life we fail to keep it up? Does the brain shrink like a withered prune? studies have found that continued intellectual activity between ages of 20 and 60 may protect against dementia in later life. One found that continuing intellectual pursuits reduced the risk of Alzheimer's disease by a third. In another study, relatively inactive patients were 250% more likely to develop Alzheimer's.
     Damaged brains can adapt and learn. Researchers who have used brain scanners have found that other parts of the brain can compensate. But exercising the brain, in much the same way as one would exercise a damaged muscle, perhaps by repeating a list of items, does not help regrowth.
     Are you going to benefit more by reading Shakespeare than Vogue? It probably doesn't matter as long as the brain is exposed to new information that stimulates your cells.Luckily, physical activity also counts. whether physical exercise is as beneficial as intellectual activity remains unknown.


cited from the book CAN YOU DRILL A HOLE THROUGH YOUR HEAD AND SURVIVE?