Women's Health March 2, 2026 0 Comments

Unlock Hidden Brain Power: How One Free Game Could Seriously Boost Your Mental Fitness Today

Ever wondered if those brain-training games could actually do more than just kill time? Well, buckle up, because a fresh study tracking nearly 3,000 folks over two decades just dropped a fascinating hint: playing a certain free online speed-training video game—and sticking with some booster sessions—might actually lower your risk of dementia by 25%. Surprising, right? For years, we’ve been nudged to tackle puzzles and Sudoku to keep our minds sharp as the years roll on, yet this game is making a pretty compelling case for shaking things up—and yes, it’s totally free and online. Now, I’m all for leveling up my mental game, but the experts insist, while these findings are promising, we really need to dig deeper before declaring victory. And hey, if video games aren’t your jam, no worries—there are plenty of other ways to keep that noggin ticking. Curious to see why this particular game might be the brain’s new best friend? Let’s dive in. LEARN MORE

4 min read

A new study using Medicare claims to identify Alzheimer’s and dementia diagnoses shows that playing a free online speed-training video game (and booster sessions) may offer protective benefits.
Experts say the results are promising but that ultimately, more research is needed.
Besides video games, there are other ways you can keep your mind active and engaged.

Doctors have recommended for years that people play brain games like puzzles and Sudoku to try to keep their minds sharp as they age. But a surprising new study that followed participants for 20 years found that playing one specific brain-training video game might help protect the brain against dementia.

The study, published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions, makes an impressive case for challenging your brain regularly. And even better: This game is free and available online.

But what is this game, and why might it have such an impact on your dementia risk? Here’s the deal.

Meet the experts: Marilyn Albert, PhD, study co-author and director of the Division of Cognitive Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Clifford Segil, DO, a neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA

What did the study find?

For the study, researchers followed nearly 3,000 people aged 65 and older and assigned them to one of four groups. One group did nothing; another did memory training, which focused on strategies for remembering lists, words, and story details; another did reason training, which focused on improving the ability to solve pattern-based problems; and another did a speed-training video game, which asked players to find objects on a screen quickly and make a decision about them. (You can check it out online here.)

The speed-training participants completed up to 10 sessions of the game, twice a week, for 60 to 75 minutes per session over five weeks. Half of the participants had additional “booster” training for up to 23 hours over a three-year period.

“The booster sessions at one year and three years were less [in duration] than the original training,” explains Marilyn Albert, PhD, study co-author and director of the Division of Cognitive Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. These sessions were thought to simply reinforce what people originally learned during the first session with the game, she says.

From there, the researchers tracked medical records to see which participants were diagnosed with dementia over the next 20 years. They found that participants who played the speed-training brain game and did the booster sessions had a 25% lower risk of being diagnosed with dementia compared to those who didn’t receive any cognitive training. People who didn’t do those extra sessions didn’t see a benefit, nor did those in the groups that did memory training or reason training.

Why might this game combat dementia?

There are different types of dementia, including subcortical dementias, which cause slower responses to stimuli, explains Clifford Segil, DO, a neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California. “Increased processing speed may be protective for subcortical types of dementia,” he says.

The speed-training game also promoted cognitive activity in general, Albert says. “That’s why we think this speed and processing training was so beneficial,” she explains.

But Segil stresses that more work is needed. The study “should be explored more in a wider group of people to see if these results are reproducible,” Segil says. “I am intrigued and would like to see it done with a larger group of people,” he adds.

That being said, Segil isn’t necessarily suggesting everyone try this game. “There is no neurologist in the world in 2026 who is going to agree that playing games like this will definitely protect you from getting dementia as you age,” he says. And while “the idea that cognitive games can be neuroprotective has been around since the advent of a crossword puzzle,” ultimately, more research is needed to help prove exactly how and why these games may help.

What else can you do to lower your risk?

Engaging your brain as you get older is crucial, Segil says. But it doesn’t necessarily have to be a video game that gets your brain engaged. Segil recommends that his retired patients take classes to learn new material, read, and listen to music to keep their minds sharp. Being physically active and managing health conditions like high blood pressure are important, too, Albert says.

But if you’re into video games, give this one a try. It can help relieve stress and might even boost your brainpower, all in one go. Just remember to schedule a booster session down the line if you want ideal brain benefits.

Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.