Super Mario helps prevent dementia, scientists say

PLAYING video games such as Super Mario for two months can improve brain capacity and help forestall dementia, say scientists.

Researchers found that playing three-dimensional platform video games and puzzle or logic games was associated with a greater grey matter in the navigation area of the brain.

Training on 3D video games is thought to increase grey matter in the hippocampus, which is vital for learning new skills, because players are required to use spatial memory processes to build a cognitive map of in-game environments.

The study, published in the PLOS One journal, also suggested that playing such games may result in brain growth in younger adults.

The study, conducted at the University of Montreal, showed that young people who played the 1996 game Super Mario 64 for just two months had increased spatial and episodic memory compared with those who trained on a two-dimensional game.

Scientists are only just beginning to understand the impact of learning on the hippocampal system.

The link between cognitive maps and increased grey matter in the hippocampus was first discovered in black-cab drivers, who undergo strenuous spatial memory training in order to navigate their way around London.

Researchers discovered that such drivers, who must pass a rigorous test commonly referred to as “the knowledge”, had more grey matter in the posterior hippocampus of their brains, compared to other drivers.

Greg West, associate professor at the University of Montreal, said he hoped that video game training could be applied to help prevent people developing degenerative conditions such as dementia.

He said: “No study to date has shown that video game training can directly increase grey matter in the hippocampus of older adults.”