--- title: Brain Aging: Staying Busy Will Keep Your Brain Young description: One of the best ways to keep your brain sharp as you get older may be to stay busy, according to new research. canonical: https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-05-19T16:41:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-06T09:17:36.343Z article:section: Health og:title: Your Brain Will Age Better If You Do This og:description: One way to keep your mind sharp og:url: https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eb9e8e4e1c0d452/6988604c8e06017e23461fdb/brain-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1000 og:image:height: 563 og:image:alt: TIME.com stock health brain og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Your Brain Will Age Better If You Do This twitter:description: One way to keep your mind sharp twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eb9e8e4e1c0d452/6988604c8e06017e23461fdb/brain-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1000&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Your Brain Will Age Better If You Do This > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=a4957b73-01a3-4578-a285-be976dc35bfb&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Busyness Leads to Brain Boost [Watch (HLS stream): Busyness Leads to Brain Boost](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/t7n5K97S.m3u8) (0:43)  _Published 2016-05-23. One of the best ways to keep your brain sharp as you get older may be to stay busy, according to new research._ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin May 19, 2016 4:41 PM UTC One of the best ways to keep your brain sharp as you get older may be to stay busy, according to new research. by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin May 19, 2016 4:41 PM UTC One of the best ways to keep your[ brain ](http://time.com/4269672/exercise-brain-aging/)sharp as you get older may be to stay busy, according to new research. While scientists have previously recommended engaging in [mentally challenging activities](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160115100906.htm), a [new study](http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnagi.2016.00098/full) suggests that keeping a packed schedule may offer similar benefits. In a survey of over 300 people participating in the Dallas Lifespan Brain Study, study authors found that among adults over the age of 50, having a busy schedule was associated with better brain processing, improved memory, sharper reasoning and better vocabulary. People in the study ranged from 50 to 89 years old, and the positive effect of busyness on the brain was consistent across age. This, the study authors conclude, suggests that keeping a busy lifestyle is important in middle age as well as old age. It’s possible that staying busy increases people’s ability to learn new things, as they may be exposed to different situations, people, and information on a daily basis, the researchers suggest. But it’s also possible that people with higher cognitive abilities are also more likely to be busier. The study cannot definitively determine that busyness alone causes better brain health. And what about the stress that can come from maintaining a tight schedule? “We certainly considered that being very busy could hurt cognition,” says study author Denise Park, director of research at the Center for Vital Longevity at The University of Texas at Dallas. “Basically, the data suggest that the benefits of busyness outweigh the downside.” Park says her team plans to further study the effects of busyness on the brain to hopefully further untangle the factors that improve or hamper cognition later in life. ## Transcript [00:42] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/"},"headline":"Your Brain Will Age Better If You Do This","datePublished":"2016-05-19T16:41:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-06T09:17:36.343Z","description":"Keeping a busy schedule may benefit the brain","url":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/","keywords":["Brain"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eb9e8e4e1c0d452/6988604c8e06017e23461fdb/brain-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alexandra Sifferlin","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4eb9e8e4e1c0d452/6988604c8e06017e23461fdb/brain-health-illo.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"TIME.com stock health brain","caption":"TIME.com stock health brain","creditText":"Illustration by Sydney Rae Hass for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/brain/","name":"Brain"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/","name":"Your Brain Will Age Better If You Do This"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Busyness Leads to Brain Boost","description":"One of the best ways to keep your brain sharp as you get older may be to stay busy, according to new research.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/t7n5K97S/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-05-23T15:08:39.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/t7n5K97S.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/","duration":"PT43S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4341680/busy-brain-cognitive-function-aging/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```