The aging process is inevitable and we should all accept this fact because such acceptance will make our lives much easier. It is true that many of our mental capacities and cognitive skills decline over time and numeracy skills are not an exception. This process starts around middle age and gets worse as we grow older.
Although scientists are conducting numerous studies related to this matter each year, they have not come up with a final conclusion as to why numeracy skills decline as people get older. However, they were able to determine several factors that have an influence on numeracy skills. For instance, one study has confirmed that children with high IQ have fewer chances to experience radical change in their numeracy skills due to the aging process.
What is interesting is that our overall physical health can also affect our mental health and indirectly our numeracy skills. Whilst it is true that having a certain disease doesn’t affect these skills, it is also true that general decline in our physical health does.
Another interesting fact is that our brain gets smaller as we get older. The cortex and white matter become thinner and this is a result of the changes that happen in all parts of the body. But, this doesn’t mean that the brain will start losing its numeracy skills or cognitive functions as a result of the shrinking. It tries to adjust and use some other areas that were previously not very active. The brain can adjust in a better way in cases where the individual had high childhood IQ, better education and better mental activity at a young age.
Scientists have also found that people start experience numeracy skills decline when they turn 24. This decline makes progress as we grow older. The good news is that we can do more than one thing to prevent this, but too few people take any steps to improve their numeracy. The reason is simple – they are not aware that they can do something about it.
First of all, they can implement some changes in their lifestyle and diet. For example, eating foods that are rich in vitamin B, C and A, flavonoids and beta-carotene can significantly reduce the effects of aging. They can actually slow down this process and reduce or eliminate some of the consequences that we can expect from this process. People also need to stay away from some habits like drinking alcohol and smoking. However, drinking one glass of wine a day has proven to be helpful because it improves the cardiovascular health. In addition, people that live a physically active lifestyle have less chance of rapid decline in their numeracy skills. It is wise to exercise at least three times a week.
Many experts have confirmed that playing maths games can be very helpful too. These games are usually found online and, although they look simple, they can be very interesting and fun. In this way you will exercise your brain and work on your numeracy skills.
