56 THE QUEENS COURIER • HEALTH • OCTOBER 4, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
health
7 surprising benefi ts of doing jigsaw puzzles
Th ere’s a quiet movement going on in
this country, and it doesn’t involve apps,
data or the latest fad. Following the lead of
vinyl record albums, coloring books and
traditional board games, jigsaw puzzles are
seeing a resurgence in popularity. Perhaps,
because it’s an opportunity to unplug and
give yourself and family an escape from
the information overload that is buzzing
through the very fabric of our lives 24/7.
Wrestling the kids (or yourself) away
from screens, devices, even the television
can be a nearly impossible task,
but it’s vital to our mental and even
physical health. A jigsaw puzzle requires
your full attention and therein lies the
magic. Everyone from tweens and teens
to millennials and over-worked parents to
seniors are returning to this quiet pastime
of childhood. Call it a retro revolution.
Ravensburger, a company that has been
making high-quality, premium jigsaw
puzzles for 134 years, recently partnered
with Target to off er a new line of 500- and
1,000-piece puzzles because anyone and
everyone can benefi t from puzzling.
(HINT: Start with the 500-piece puzzle.
Th ey’re designed to strike the perfect balance
of challenge and solvability.)
Here are some benefi ts of puzzling that
might surprise you.
Jigsaw puzzles exercise
the left and right sides
of your brain at once
Your left brain is logical and works in
a linear fashion, while your right brain is
creative and intuitive. When you’re doing
a jigsaw puzzle, both sides are engaged,
according to Sanesco Health, an industry
leader in neurotransmitter testing. Th ink
of it as a mental workout that improves
your problem-solving skills and attention
span. It’s no surprise that Bill Gates
admits to being an avid puzzler.
Jigsaw puzzles improve
your short-term memory
Can’t remember what you had for
lunch yesterday? Jigsaw puzzles can help
with that. Doing a puzzle reinforces connections
between brain cells, improves
mental speed and is an especially eff ective
way to improve short-term memory.
Jigsaw puzzles improve your
visual-spatial reasoning
When you do a jigsaw puzzle, you need
to look at individual pieces and fi gure out
where they’ll fi t into the big picture. If you
do it regularly, you’ll improve visual-spatial
reasoning, which helps with driving a
car, packing, using a map, learning and
following dance moves, and a whole host
of other things.
Jigsaw puzzles are a great meditation
tool and stress reliever
Focusing on one image for a long period
of time, without extraneous thoughts
entering your mind, is in itself meditation.
By doing a jigsaw puzzle, you’re getting
the same benefi ts as if you meditated.
Th e stress of everyday life evaporates and
is replaced by a sense of peace and tranquility
that lowers your blood pressure
and heart rate.
Jigsaw puzzles are a great
way to connect with family
Starting a jigsaw puzzle and keeping it
on a table in your living room or kitchen
is an invitation for the whole family
to participate, whenever they have a few
minutes to sit down and focus. It’s a tactic
that parents of teens can use for starting
a conversation while working toward
a shared goal.
Conversely, jigsaw puzzles are great for
some needed alone time
Puzzling is perfect for people who want
a quiet, solo break from the bustle and
unrelenting stimulus of today’s digital
lifestyle.
You’ll live longer, better if you puzzle
regularly
Studies show that people who do jigsaw
and crossword puzzles have longer
life spans with less chances of developing
Alzheimer’s disease, memory loss or
dementia. Puzzling stimulates the brain
and actually wards off the plaque that is
the marker of Alzheimer’s, according to
a recent study published in the Archives
of Neurology. Th e study compared brain
scans of 75-year-olds to 25-year-olds.
Th e elderly people who did puzzles regularly
had brain scans comparable to the
25-year-olds.
Doing jigsaw puzzles is good for your
mind, body and spirit. So, on your
next lazy Sunday (or better yet - crazed
Monday), unplug, put your phone on
“Do Not Disturb,” and get swept away
by a puzzle.
Courtesy BPT