People who regularly play computer games may have a lower risk of developing dementia, according to a study conducted in the United Kingdom.
The research, published June 19, 2024, in Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy, found that participants who frequently played computer games had a 19% lower relative risk of developing dementia compared with those who rarely or never played.
Researchers examined data from 471,346 participants in the UK Biobank, a long-term research project that collects health and lifestyle information to better understand disease.
Participants were an average of 56.8 years old at the beginning of the study and were followed for a median of 13.7 years. During that time, 7,898 participants were diagnosed with dementia.
Researchers divided participants into three groups based on how often they reported playing computer games: never or rarely, sometimes, and often.
Those who played occasionally had a 10% lower relative risk of dementia, while frequent players had a 19% lower risk. The findings accounted for several other factors, including age, education, physical activity, sleep, smoking, and existing health conditions.
The study also found differences in cognitive performance between gamers and non-gamers.
Frequent players generally performed better on tests involving memory, reaction time, reasoning, and attention. Brain imaging also found an association between frequent gaming and greater gray matter volume in the hippocampus, a region involved in learning and memory.
These findings suggest that computer games could have a connection to long-term brain health, although researchers have not established that gaming directly prevents dementia.
The study was observational, meaning participants were not assigned to play games as part of an experiment. Instead, researchers compared their existing gaming habits with health outcomes recorded over time.
That distinction matters because people with better cognitive health may already be more likely to play video games. Other lifestyle and health differences could also contribute to the results.
Researchers conducted an additional genetic analysis that supported a possible relationship between gaming and reduced dementia risk, but those findings do not establish that playing video games will prevent the disease.
The study also had limitations. Participants reported how frequently they played computer games, but the research did not establish which games they played, how many hours they spent gaming, or whether certain genres were more beneficial than others.
Researchers also relied on hospital records to identify dementia diagnoses, meaning some milder cases may not have been captured.
The findings are particularly interesting as gaming becomes more common among older adults. Games that involve solving puzzles, making decisions, remembering information, or reacting quickly can require players to use several cognitive skills.
However, the research does not establish whether those activities are responsible for the lower dementia risk observed among frequent gamers.
Researchers say further studies are needed to determine whether playing computer games can help protect cognitive health and whether particular types of games provide greater benefits.
The full study, Associations of Computer Gaming With Incident Dementia, Cognitive Functions, and Brain Structure, is available to read for free.
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