Seniors improve memory after rote learning
CHICAGO (UPI) -- Irish researchers find seniors who engaged in an intensive period of rote learning followed by a long rest period had improved memory and verbal recall.

"We didn't see an immediate improvement following the intensive memorization period," said Jonathan McNulty of University College, Dublin. "However, after a six-week rest, the volunteers manifested both metabolic changes in the brain and improved memory performance."

Approximately 40 percent of people over age 60 have some kind of memory difficulty, caused by the loss of brain cells over time, along with changes in brain chemistry.

The study involved 24 healthy older adults between the ages of 55 and 70 who engaged in six weeks of intensive rote learning -- memorizing a newspaper article or poem of 500 words -- followed by six weeks of rest.

At the end of the six-week learning session, no changes in the brain metabolism or memory performance were observed. But following the rest period, all of the volunteers experienced improvements in their verbal and episodic memory -- they were better able to remember and repeat a short story and a list of words and to recall events that occurred earlier in the day or week, said McNulty.

The study was presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.