16 September 2021
By: Nomzamo Jiyane
The game of Chess is loved all over the world. It is undoubtedly a fact that Chess involves an intense intellectual challenge that’s very good for the health of your mind. Playing Chess helps to build strong memory skills because the game involves memorizing numerous combinations of moves and their potential outcomes.
It is also interesting that playing chess results in higher performance in one particular kind of recollection: auditory memory. This is the ability to remember what you have learned through hearing. In one experiment, researchers compared the recall ability of expert chess players to that of people with no chess playing experience. They found that the chess players were significantly better at recalling list of words they heard than people who had never played chess.
Chess also aids in the ability to remember and quickly recognize virtual patterns, which researchers think comes from memorizing complex chess positions. Careful contemplating and planning is one of the cognitive health benefits of playing chess.
Chess is also considered as a creative therapy strategy as it allows you to see your reaction to stress and challenges as they arise in the course of the match. Most therapists and counselors play chess with clients as a means of increasing self-awareness and therapy.
Playing Chess may also offer protection against the development of dementia. Researchers found evidence that the game which challenges memory, calculation, visual- spatial skills and critical thinking abilities, may help reduce cognitive decline and postpone the effect of dementia as you age. The potential cognitive health benefits of playing chess is something you will have to experience for yourself.
It’s your move.
Featured image sourced from the internet
