Mind over Matter
Sydney Morning Herald - Tue, 21 Nov 2006
Believers don't need proof that exercising the brain can help prevent dementia, writes Julie Robotham
... Nicola Gates, a clinical neuropsychologist and the director of HeadStrong Cognitive Fitness in Mosman, is already acting on that principle. The company is among the first in Sydney to offer a brain-training program to older adults.
"Until as recently as six years ago", she says, "we were told the brain was concrete ... that it doesn't change except to gradually diminish over time". Then, research convincingly showed the adult brain could make new connections, and the field transformed overnight.
"The race is on to harness the discover, to find the best way of augmenting brain connections", says Gates, whose career has focused on helping people make the most of the mental capacity they have: her background is in rehabilitation after head injury.
Though Gates is coy about the actual methods HeadStrong employs, she says it is not premature to start putting science into practice.
"The exercises have a sound theoretical base," she says. "We're in transition from pure neuroscience research to providing a service."
Excerpt from the Sydney Morning Herald, 21/11/2006