Why Zoom is good for your ageing brain: engaging with others – even online – helps moderate the effects of dementia, study shows

Participants 75 and older who took part in weekly Zoom calls showed improved brain connectivity, which shields against cognitive impairment

‘The saying ‘use it or lose it’ really applies to the brain,’ says lead researcher Hiroko Dodge, who says online interaction helps strengthen the brain’s network

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A recent study showed that regular Zoom calls helped protect the ageing brain against cognitive decline. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 5:15pm, 16 Oct 2022Updated: 9:52pm, 16 Oct 2022

Research has shown that social interactions, such as simply talking to friends and family members, can moderate the effects of dementia.

Now, new findings indicate that such interactions do not have to take place in person – the chats are effective if they are conducted on Zoom, too.

In a study involving subjects who were 75 years and older, participants who took part in four 30-minute Zoom calls a week saw a boost in their cognitive reserve – resistance to damage of the brain – improving the brain’s ability to deal with mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Boosting cognitive reserve does not prevent or cure dementia – it increases the brain’s capabilities to deal with it by improving its connectivity.

“Social connections can be protective against dementia and Alzheimer’s disease through cognitive stimulation which improve cognitive reserve,” says professor Hiroko Dodge, now director of research analytics at the Interdisciplinary Brain Centre at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, both in Boston in the US state of Massachusetts, who led the study.