Training the brain: Surprising benefits for seniors

By Martin LaSalle May 29th, 2026

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In 5 seconds A UdeM study finds that the benefits of training the brain to perform specific cognitive tasks can transfer to other cognitive processes in older adults.

For older adults, it is important to vary their exercise routines to improve or maintain cognitive function.
Photo : Getty

Cognitive training apps and programs promise to sharpen memory, improve attention and prevent cognitive decline. One important question about these claims is whether the improvements produced by such exercises transfer to other cognitive functions, such as those used for driving, managing an agenda or following a conversation.

Caroll-Ann Blanchette, a doctoral student in biomedical sciences and researcher at the Montreal Heart Institute’s EPIC Centre, decided to find out.

Under the supervision of Professor Louis Bherer of UdeM’s Department of Medicine, Blanchette conducted a study to measure the transfer effect of cognitive training. The results, published in the Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, show that the benefits of training do transfer to other tasks, but to a different degree in younger and older adults.

Two age groups and two types of training

A total of 84 participants—35 young adults aged 18 to 30 and 49 older adults aged 60 and older—were assigned to one of two training programs, consisting of six 45- to 60-minute sessions spread over four weeks.

One group practiced a “dual task,” in which they had to identify two sets of images on a tablet simultaneously, one with each hand. The participants had to select an image of an animal (snake, dog or bird) with the left hand and an image of a celestial body (planet, star or sun) with the right hand. “It’s a bit like driving while looking up an address,” Blanchette said. “The brain has to coordinate two streams of information in parallel.”

The other group practiced the “n-back” task, which taps into working memory. Numbers are displayed on the screen and participants have to indicate whether a number matches one that appeared one, two or three positions earlier in the sequence. For example, in the “2-back” condition, when shown the sequence “3, 7, 3, 5, 3,” the participant has to recognize that the final “3” matches the number two positions back. The greater the distance between the numbers, the more difficult the task is to perform.

After completing the training, participants were evaluated on the same tasks but with new stimuli (different sets of images for the dual-task test, letters instead of numbers for the n-back test) to make sure any changes reflected real improvement rather than memorization.

Caroll-Ann Blanchette, candidate au doctorat — Caroll-Ann Blanchette, a doctoral student in biomedical sciences and researcher at the Montreal Heart Institute’s EPIC Centre
Photo : Photo courtesy of Caroll-Ann Blanchette

Louis Bherer, professeur au Département de médecine de l'Université de Montréal — Louis Bherer, UdeM's Department of Medicine professor
Photo : Photo courtesy of Louis Bherer

Greater transfer effect in older adults

Overall, all groups showed significant improvement after training, but the researchers were most surprised by the results for the older adults.

Performance on the second dual-task test was significantly improved by dual-task training in both age groups. However, the n-back training produced improvements in dual-task performance only in the older group. In other words, for the older adults, the improvement in cognitive function achieved by practicing with the number sequences carried over to greater proficiency in performing two tasks simultaneously, a very different skill.

However, performance on the second n-back test at the hardest level, the 3-back condition, was improved only by n-back training. The dual-task training yielded no significant improvement in n-back performance in either the younger and older group.

Neural compensation

Why was the transfer effect more pronounced in the older group? The researchers hypothesize that it was due to a process known as neural compensation. With age, the brain tends to mobilize more working memory resources to manage multiple tasks simultaneously.

“We observe that with age, brain functioning loses specificity,” Blanchette said. “To accomplish a task, we call on other mechanisms; when performing dual tasks, we rely more heavily on mechanisms involved in working memory.”

Since the n-back training strengthened working memory, it helped the older adults coordinate multiple activities at once. Blanchette cautioned, however, that this interpretation is hypothetical and will need to be validated by studies combining behavioural measures and neuroimaging.

A training mix

One takeaway is that a single type of cognitive training is not enough—at least not for older adults. “You have to vary the training in order to maintain or improve cognitive functioning,” Blanchette said.

Bherer believes these results offer hope: “Cognition changes with age, but we can influence it. That’s good news!”

Blanchette and Bherer advocate for programs that include multiple components. Blanchette plans to explore this idea in greater detail in the rest of her thesis, which focuses on people with heart failure. Without intervention, this population faces a 40 to 60 per cent risk of developing cognitive impairments.

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