CMU School of Drama


Monday, September 08, 2008

Acting out contributes to brain health as we age, study shows

chicagotribune.com: "For nearly 15 years, Helga and Tony Noice have been studying how acting skills can improve brain function in older people.
They've documented that memory, comprehension and problem-solving skills all improve in people who apply mental exercises used by actors. And now, with a third grant from the National Institutes of Health, they'll be able to share what they've learned with a wider audience."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that this is really interesting. I was raised in a family that has had series of cognitive issues, so hearing that something like acting can be beneficial towards your health is amazing to me. It makes sense though, acting is a very physical profession, plus it makes you stretch your mind to new concepts. You also have to memorize a bunch of lines all the time, which is really hard, so they stretch their mind in a way that most people never do.

Derek said...

I wonder though if being an actor/mt shows that it will improve brain health or not? I mean there are a lot of actors (who i love) who seem to have little going on in there. Though i guess the same can be said by others, they just don't run around and flaunt it in the lobby.