Neurologist suggests computer games to ward off senility
Neurologist suggests computer games to ward off senility
JAKARTA (JP): Parents and old folks around the house just might want to pay closer attention to their children's video games, which, a researcher says, can help prevent senility.
"People should design games and crossword puzzles especially for the elderly," said Sidiarto Kusumoputro, head of the Indonesian Center for Brain Studies.
"Use it or lose it," was his comment at a discussion on the brain and its myriad functions.
"Stimulation programs for the elderly help maintain the functions of the brain which are vital to survival," he said, adding that even experts have not paid much attention to this.
Stimulation maintains the function of the left and right sides of the brain to work together, he said at the talks organized by the Higina health magazine on Thursday.
In most cases only the left side of one's brain is developed through arithmetic, writing and reading, which, said Sidiarto, can leave the right side, the source of creativity, neglected.
The right hemisphere is the source of non-verbal abilities and the ability to know one's environment. It is also the source of anger, sadness, happiness and intuition.
"All this time we thought these were the business of the heart," joked Sidiarto.
"Now we should say 'With all my right brain' instead of 'with all my heart,'" he said to the laughter of the audience.
Hyperactive
Business talents are based on speculative abilities developed in the right hemisphere as are skills in sports and arts.
Sidiarto said his experience in working with mentally disabled people has been a rich source of knowledge of how to maximize the use of the brain. "But this subject has been neglected here (in Indonesia). Treatment of people with brain disorders has focused mainly on nursing, education and training."
Hyperactive children who have learning difficulties in school need special approaches, he said. They are considered troublesome in class and look stupid, "but many may be geniuses".
"Where should these children be taken to if we do not have special referrals?" he said.
He praised the Ministry of Education and Culture which last month proposed a study on children with learning disabilities.
Leading neurologist Mahar Mardjono, who moderated the discussion, said "it is very easy to kill creativity".
The creativity of a small child will diminish if they are taught incorrectly by teachers and parents.
"Don't force a child to use his right hand if he wants to use his left," he said. "Imposing the use of the right hand can eventually make a child stupid...when they might otherwise be geniuses," said Mahar, a former rector of the University of Indonesia. (anr)