Put On Your Dancing Shoes
(from living well)

Dancing is a great way for people of all ages to get and stay in shape.  It is a fun way to be social and reduce stress.  But one benefit of dance that you may not know is that it can actually make you smarter.

Dancing increases serotonin levels, the neurotransmitter responsible for enhancing many of the brain's functions, both directly and indirectly.  And increased serotonin levels enhance learning abilities and improve memory.

A 21-year study of senior citizens, aged 75 and older, led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, funded by the National Institute on Aging, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine objectively measured mental acuity in aging people by monitoring rates of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.

The study wanted to see if any physical or cognitive recreational activities influenced mental acuity.  The study showed that some activities had a significant beneficial effect while other activities had none.

One of the surprises of the study was that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia.  There was one important exception:  the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing which reduced the risk of dementia by 76 percent.