Research shows playing board may provide protection against this dementia. Here are five Stay Sharp suggested games to bring to your holiday celebrations. These games make great holiday gifts in addition to providing physical, cognitive, and emotional benefits for all ages and abilities.
Games for Geri!
When selecting games with the just right amount of challenge, age is commonly used to help identify appropriate game recommendations. We see it on almost every game box, for ages 3 and up, ages 8 and up. I am here to represent the “and up” population. As adults we see the benefits of providing children with the opportunity to game. We understand the multiple benefits such as developing fine motor coordination, problem solving, attention, memory, recall, and social interaction skills. However, most people do not realize that for the same reasons we provide children with the opportunities to game is the very reason why we should be promoting gaming for our elders. Spielbound’s Senior Outreach programming is geared at educating the public including health professionals, and seniors about the benefits of geriatric gaming. Spielbound’s Senior Outreach is also interested in developing ways to provide opportunities for seniors of all ages and abilities to participate in games to promote overall quality of life.
The first thing that stands out about Mary1 is her restlessness. At 87 years of age, Mary is a familiar figure pacing the hallways at a local assisted living facility for seniors, her small frame practically bouncing with energy. Every time I walk through the door, Mary practically skips over to me in delight, loudly proclaiming, “How ya doin,’ honey?” before bombarding me with questions on when the next activity starts. Her face beams a warm smile as she searches tirelessly for a puzzle or movie, anything to keep herself preoccupied with a task more interesting than the last.
Dementia, including that caused by Alzheimer's disease, has become one of the most important (affecting 45 million people) and costly (US$600 billion per year) health problems in our aging world. Yet, we are still far from finding a cure. Fortunately, several recent studies have found a connection between playing board games and preventing dementia. This quote from a very recent research article sums it up nicely: