Individuals, particularly those over the age of 50, who are glued to their smartphones have lower rates of cognitive decline.
Using your phone regularly keeps the brain healthy.
It is regularly suggested that being glued to the devices is harmful to brain health but neuroscientists in the US have found that people over 50 who spend a lot of time on the gadgets had lower rates of cognitive decline.
Dr. Michael Scullin, an expert at Baylor University, said: “You can flip on the news on just about any day and you’ll see people talking about how technologies are harming us.
“People often use the terms ‘brain drain’ and ‘brain rot’, and now digital dementia is an emerging phrase.
“As researchers, we wanted to know if this was true.”
The boffin explained that the difficulties older adults face in getting to grips with modern technology are cognitively beneficial for them.
Dr. Scullin said: “One of the first things that middle-age and older adults were saying is that, ‘I’m so frustrated by this computer. This is hard to learn.’
“That’s actually a reflection of the cognitive challenge, which may be beneficial for the brain even if it doesn’t feel great in the moment.”
Smartphone addicts have healthier brains
