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<\/p>\nKIDS take up all sorts of hobbies as they grow up, some lasting a lifetime and others becoming boring within weeks.<\/p>\n
But if there\u2019s one thing you can do now to boost your child\u2019s brain health in later life, it\u2019s to get them to play a musical instrument.<\/p>\n
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That\u2019s according to a new study conducted by the University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh Napier University.<\/p>\n
Researchers found that people who had played a musical instrument most of their lives did slightly better in tests of their cognitive ability in their 70s and early 80s than those who had not.<\/p>\n
The link is seen even when other factors that may have influenced older brain age health are taken into account, such as their intelligence or education.<\/p>\n
Studies have already suggested that children benefit from playing music when they are young, performing better on cognitive tests.<\/p>\n
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The study participants were all born in 1936 in the Edinburgh and Lothian areas.<\/p>\n
They were tested on a number of physical and mental functions as they grew older, including regular resitting of standardised cognitive ability tests.<\/p>\n
Out of the 420 participants in the latest study, 167 had some experience of playing a musical instrument, mostly during their childhood or teenage years.<\/p>\n
All participants showed similar levels of decline in their test performances in their 70s.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n However, there was one difference – those who had experience playing an instrument performed better in tests of processing speed and visuospatial reasoning.<\/p>\n Visuospatial reasoning is the capacity to imagine in one's mind the position of objects and where they are in relation to each other.<\/p>\n It plays a key role in daily tasks, such as walking around a room with furniture or driving. <\/p>\n Researchers said the results do not prove that musical training enhances cognitive skills, since unexplored factors might have contributed to the findings.<\/p>\n They said the results do, however, clearly show playing a musical instrument might contribute to staying sharper in later life.<\/p>\n Dr Judith Okely, of Edinburgh Napier University, said: "We see these results as an exciting starting point for further investigation into how musical experience from across the life course might contribute to healthy ageing."<\/p>\n The study, funded by Age UK and the Economic and Social Research Council, is published in the journal Psychology and Aging.<\/p>\n It comes after the University of Edinburgh produced a paper last year suggesting a link between playing an instrument and better cognitive skills in old age.<\/p>\n Further studies are now being planned – and the experts want to hear from people with a wide range of musical experiences, including informal music listening, singing, dancing, performing and\/or teaching.<\/p>\n Anyone over 18 can volunteer to join a new database to contribute to future studies. <\/p>\n The researchers are particularly interested in hearing from people who have retired.<\/p>\n Professor Katie Overy of the University of Edinburgh said: "Music can be such a joyful and enriching experience at all ages, regardless of expertise or musical genre.<\/p>\n "We are keen to investigate musical experience further, including music listening and singing, and we look forward to developing the new volunteer database."<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/newspress-collage-23569973-1692613825975.jpg\")
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