Engaging in a hobby like reading a book, making a patchwork quilt or even playing comput

er games can delay the onset of dementia, a US study suggests. Watching TV but does not【M1】______ count—and indeed spending significant periods of time in front of the box may speed up with memory loss, researchers found.【M2】______ Nearly 200 people aged 70 to 89 with mild memory problems were compared to a group who had no impairment. The researchers【M3】______ from the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota asked the volunteers about their daily activities within the past year and how mental active【M4】______ they had been between the age of 50 to 65. Those who had during middle age busy reading, playing games or engaging in craft【M5】______ hobbies like patchworking or knitting was found to have a 40%【M6】______ reduced risk of memory impairment. In later life, those same activities reduced the risk by between 30 and 50%. Those who watched TV for less than 7 hours a day were also 50% more likely【M7】______ to develop memory loss than those who spent longer than that staring at the screen. "This study is exciting because it demonstrates that age does【M8】______ not need to be a passive process," said study author and neuroscientist Dr Yonas Geda. "By simply engaging in cognitive exercise, you can protect against future memory loss. Of course, the challenge with this type of research is what we are relying on【M9】______ past memories of the participants, therefore we need to conform【M10】______ these findings with additional research."

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