Doing crossword puzzles won't help to prevent the memory loss associated with dementia such as Alzheimer's disease, warns a German doctor. Dr Joerg Schulz, director of the Clinic for Neurology at Aachen University Hospital, said the puzzles didn't exercise short-term memory, which is what dementia initially impairs.
The same goes for computer-based memory training, he said - what the trainees learn is stored in their long-term memory, which doesn't worsen until dementia's late stages. To stay mentally agile, Schulz recommends that elderly people get regular physical exercise and cultivate social contacts.
His comments appeared in the latest issue of the German mass-circulation health magazine Neue Apotheken Illustrierte.