Adults Can Play!

Submitted by Vicki Hazelwood, Building Brains Together

The word “play” can be seen as juvenile and a term that describes what children do. Research however shows that engaging in playful activities throughout the lifespan – even into our 70’s, 80’s and 90’s is essential for maintaining health brain function and social connections.

At all ages, play can enhance self esteem, improve creativity and innovation, and bring significant joy. Play also offers the benefit of strengthening executive functioning. Executive function skills include working memory, flexible thinking, and behavioural inhibition. Working memory helps us remember the rules, plan, and organize our day. Flexible thinking allows us to solve problems in different ways and look at situations from different perspectives. Behavioural inhibition is our ability to stop and think before acting. For example, resisting an urge or impulse to lash out at someone that annoys you.

In a study controlled for IQ, gender, and SES, it was shown that adults with strong executive function skills have better health outcomes, earn more income and commit fewer crimes (Moffitt et al. PNAS 2011). It is fantastic that these skills and outcomes can achieved through play!

As adults, play can help us form, foster, and maintain social connections. Social Connection nullify some of the brains natural cognitive decline, improve sleep quality, reduce stress, and reduce loneliness. It is important to note that loneliness is reported as being very unhealthy for the aging brain. A recent study discovered that loneliness is worse for the aging brain than smoking 15 cigarettes a day, or obesity (Piolatto 2022).

Engaging in playful activities with others makes a difference for our wellbeing. Participating in playful activities combined with social interactions increases connections in the frontal lobe consistently (Muller 2023). Play can look different at different stages of life. Board games, card games, charades, social exercise and art classes, can all foster social connections while strengthening the brain and providing some fun.

Learn to play an instrument involves attention, thinking ahead, remembering, coordinating movement, and monitoring feedback (ears, fingers, and/or lips). Playing an instrument engages most of our brain and supports strong cognitive functioning.

Singing can be playful and provides aerobic exercise, improving cardiovascular health. Singing increases blood oxygenation, reduces stress, and improves general health across the lifespan. Singing with others has added benefits of activating areas of the brain involved in social processing.

Singing, playing an instrument, board games, or yoga, no matter what “play” looks like to you, it is important to make the time for it everyday. And since play isn’t something that is “just for kids”, we can all work at discovering what playful activities we want to engage in so we reap the benefits of a strong, healthy brain throughout our lifespan.

Sources and references

Müller, H., Baumeister, J., Bardal, E.M., Vereijken, B., Skjæret-Maroni, N. (2023). Exergaming in older adults: the effects of game characteristics on brain activity and physical activity. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 15:1143859. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1143859

Piolatto, M., Bianchi, F., Rota, M., Marengoni, A.., Akbaritabar, A., & Squazzoni, F. (2022). The effect of social relationships on cognitive decline in older adults: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal cohort studies. BMC Public Health, 22:278. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-12567-5

Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2011 Feb 15;108(7):2693-8. doi: 0.1073/pnas.1010076108. Epub 2011 Jan 24. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21262822/

Dobbins, R., Hubbard, E., Flentje, A., Dawson-Rose, C., & Leutwyler, H. (2020). Play provides social connection for older adults with serious mental illness: A grounded theory analysis of a 10-week exergame intervention. Aging & Mental Health, 24(4), 596-603. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2018.1544218