Increasing Chinese calligraphy practice can reduce risk of dementia, Hong Kong study finds
- CUHK researchers find increasing activity time among calligraphers has positive effects on brain networks for memory, attention, self-reflection and envisioning future
- Academic says study is first ‘randomised controlled trial’ to explore relationship between Chinese calligraphy and dementia
Elderly people who spend more time practising Chinese calligraphy have a reduced risk of dementia, according to a Hong Kong study which found doubling participants’ activity time can positively affect their brain networks and working memory.
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) on Thursday shared its findings from a survey conducted between 2020 and 2022 that interviewed 112 people aged 55 to 75 who regularly practised calligraphy for at least one hour each week.
Half of the participants were placed in an intervention group and told to double their activity time for six months, with researchers finding the group’s working memory was better than those who spent less time doing calligraphy.
Brain scans also showed functional connectivities had also increased among the more invested practitioners’ brain networks that oversaw memory, attention, self-reflection and envisioning the future.
Associate Professor Allen Lee Ting-chun of CUHK’s psychiatry department said the study was the first “randomised controlled trial” to explore the relationship between Chinese calligraphy and dementia.
“The clinical significance is … we strongly recommend the community-living older adults to engage in more cognitive activities because based on our randomised controlled trial, it’s helpful to their working memory and can strengthen their functional brain network,” he said.