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Researchers have found that bilingualism can slow down and mitigate the course of age-related changes in the human brain. The study is authored by scientists from the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience in Moscow, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan and Northumbria University in Newcastle.
A sample of cognitively healthy senior (60+ years of age) bilingual speakers were asked to complete an online study to assess several factors related to their second language use. The main objective of this exercise was to determine whether bilingualism may act as a mediator of the effects of natural cognitive decline with age. Results from these efforts show that bilingualism promotes the relationships between factors that are known to promote cognitive reserve and cognitive integrity, and further support the notion that bilingualism plays an important role in mitigating cognitive decline and promoting successful aging.
You can find the full brief on the study here: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.780261/full#h1