'Birdbrain' benefits: How being an expert birdwatcher may boost cognition
NBC News
Being an expert birdwatcher may alter the structure and function of your brain. And these changes may enhance cognition even as you age, new research suggests.
Being an expert birdwatcher is more than a hobby. It’s a pastime that may alter the structure and function of your brain. And these changes may enhance cognition even as you age, new research suggests.
In a Canadian study of 58 adults, the brains of expert birders, compared with those of novices, were more dense in areas related to attention and perception. Such tissue density may indicate increased communication between neurons, and these structural differences were associated with more accurate bird identification.
The findings were published Monday in JNeurosci, the Journal of Neuroscience.
“Our brains are very malleable,” said lead author Erik Wing, who during the study was a postdoctoral fellow at the Rotman Research Institute, part of the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education in Toronto.
When you learn a new skill, your brain reorganizes itself in a process called neuroplasticity. Previous research has studied this phenomenon in people who’ve honed specialized skills, including athletes and musicians.
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