In the past two days, The New York Times has published two excellent articles on brain and cognitive fitness. Despite appearing in separate sections (technology and editorial), the two have more in common than immediately meets the eye. Both raise key questions that politicians, health policy makers, business leaders, educators and consumers should pay attention to.
1) First, Exercise Your Brain, or Else You’ll ... Uh ..., by Katie Hafner (5/3/08). Some quotes:
- "At the same time, boomers are seizing on a mounting body of evidence that suggests that brains contain more plasticity than previously thought, and many people are taking matters into their own hands, doing brain fitness exercises with the same intensity with which they attack a treadmill."
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Ever wondered what explains the sometimes surreal, often misguided, health policies by our government? Well, it is beyond our humble brains to capture and articulate what may be going on...but we now see that lack of access to quality information is certainly not the main problem. Decision-making processes, and structural incentives, would probably merit more attention....
I mention this because we are really impressed by the just-published 24-page special 
issue on Preventing Memory Loss by Congressional Quarterly Researcher, one of the main publications in Capitol Hill.
The publication is not free, but worth the price for anyone active professionally in the healthcare sector, or interested in learning about latest research and policy trends, from academics to students. You can buy Buy the Electronic PDF ($4.95) or Buy the Printed Copy ($15 - $5 discount using promotion code "L8BRAIN" = $10).
Description
As the nation's baby boomers age, they are increasingly worried that their memories will deteriorate --- and with good reason. An estimated 10 million boomers will develop Alzheimer's disease or another memory-destroying neurodegenerative condition in the coming years. Policy makers and health officials worry that the resulting bulge in the number of sufferers will burden the nation's already strained health-care system. In the wake of these concerns, a vibrant brain-fitness industry is offering a variety of ways to help people keep their brains healthy, including the use of cognition-enhancing drugs and exercise. But many experts say much of what the public is being told is of limited value, at best. Intensified brain research begun years ago at the National Institutes of Health is just now beginning to produce data that scientists hope will advance efforts to prevent memory loss, but they worry that flat federal funding since 2003 may compromise the drive for solutions.
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After many months of work (and we hope many new neurons and stronger synapses in our brains), we have just released our inaugural report on the emerging Brain Fitness Software Market, 
the first to define the brain fitness software market and analyze the size and trends of its four customer segments. We estimate the size of the US brain fitness software market at $225M in2007, up from $100m in 2005 (50% CAGR). The two segments that fueled the market growth: consumers (grew from $5m to $80m, 300% CAGR) and healthcare & insurance providers (grew from $36m to $65m, 35% CAGR).
Highlights from The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2008 report include:
1) 2007 was a seminal year for the US Brain Fitness software market, which reached $225 million in revenues – up from an estimated $100 million in 2005.
2) Over 20 companies are offering tools to assess and train cognitive skills to four customer segments: consumers; healthcare and insurance providers; K12 school systems; and Fortune 1000 companies, the military, and sports teams.
3) The Nintendo Brain Age phenomenon has driven much of the growth. The consumer segment grew from a few million in 2005 to an estimated $80 million in 2007.
4) There is major confusion in the market, so education will be key. Users and buyers need help to navigate the maze of products and claims.
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We just came across an article titled Best Computer ‘Brain Games’ for Senior Citizens to Delay Alzheimer's Disease. The headline makes little scientific sense-and we observe this confusion often. The article mentions a few programs we have discussed often in this blog, such as Posit Science and MindFit, and others we haven't because we haven't found any published science behind, such as Dakim and MyBrainTrainer. And there are more programs: what about Happy Neuron, Lumosity, Spry Learning and Captain's Log. Not to talk about Nintendo Brain Age, of course.
Some of those programs have real science that, at best, shows how some specific cognitive skills (like memory, or attention, or processing) can be trained and improved-no matter the age. This is a very important message that hasn't yet percolated through many brains out there: we know today that computer-based software programs can be very useful to train some cognitive skills, better than alternative methods (paper and pencil, classroom-based, just "daily living").
Now, no single program can make ANY claim that it specifically delays/ prevents Alzheimer's Disease beyond general statements such as that Learning Slows Physical Progression of Alzheimer's Disease (hence the imperative for lifelong learning) and that mental stimulation-together with other lifestyle factors such as nutrition, physical exercise and stress management, as outlined in these Steps to Improve Your Brain Health- may contribute to build a Cognitive Reserve that may reduce the probability of problems. Programs may be able to Continue Reading »
The CDC has reported a joint initiative with the Alzheimer’s Association to create the Healthy Brain Initiative: A National Public Health Roadmap for Cognitive Health. Some quotes from their announcement:
- "In order to maintain and improve the cognitive performance of all adults, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Alzheimer's Association today released the first-ever National Public Health Road Map to Maintaining Cognitive Health (Road Map) at the 2nd Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Prevention of Dementia in Washington, DC."
- "The Road Map highlights the importance of maintaining and improving cognitive health to the overall health of the nation. The Road Map is both a call to action and a guide for implementing a coordinated approach to raising the public's awareness about cognitive health and increasing the nation's commitment to understanding both the risks for cognitive decline and ways of maintaining brain health."
- "Efforts to maintain and improve public health have focused mostly
'below the neck,' addressing diseases and conditions affecting the heart
and other bodily organs," said Harry Johns, Alzheimer's Association
President and CEO. "The National Public Health Road Map to Maintaining
Cognitive Health shifts the focus 'above the neck' to draw attention to
maintaining the health of our brains, which arguably is the most important
organ in our bodies."
We hope the message gets well-heard!
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