A new international study has found that creative hobbies such as dancing, painting, playing music, or even gaming may help slow down the brain’s natural ageing process, preserving cognitive function and mental agility.
The research, published in Nature Communications, used advanced machine-learning models—dubbed “brain clocks”—to measure the biological age of participants’ brains and compare it to their chronological age. The findings suggest that engaging in creative activities keeps the brain “younger,” especially in regions most vulnerable to age-related decline.
The study examined brain scans from dancers, musicians, visual artists, and gamers across ten countries. Researchers discovered that people who regularly took part in creative pursuits had stronger communication between brain regions, a sign of better functional connectivity. Those with years of experience appeared to have the youngest-looking brains, but even beginners showed measurable benefits after short periods of engagement.
“There is really poor mechanistic evidence explaining how creativity protects the brain,” said study co-author Agustín Ibáñez, a neuroscientist at Adolfo Ibáñez University in Santiago, Chile. “Our findings help reveal that link.”
To conduct the study, Ibáñez and his team analysed neuroimaging data from 1,240 individuals to build models capable of estimating “brain age.” They then tested the models on 232 people who regularly participated in creative activities. Across every group, from tango dancers to video gamers, participants displayed signs of younger brains compared to non-creatives.
The most striking results were seen in tango dancers, whose brains appeared an average of seven years younger than their actual age. The researchers identified the frontoparietal region—responsible for decision-making and working memory—as one of the key areas most positively affected by creativity.
To determine whether learning new skills later in life could also help, the team trained 24 volunteers to play StarCraft II, a complex strategy video game, while a control group learned a simpler, rule-based game. After several weeks, the StarCraft II players showed reduced brain age and sharper attention, while the control group showed no significant change.
“You don’t need to be Da Vinci to have healthy effects,” Ibáñez said. “Even starting something new can make a difference.”
According to Francisca Rodriguez, a cognitive scientist at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, creative activities may stimulate more areas of the brain than typical cognitive exercises like puzzles or word games. They can also boost dopamine and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)—chemicals vital for learning, motivation, and neuron growth.
The findings add to growing evidence that creative engagement—whether through music, art, dance, or gaming—can help maintain brain health and delay cognitive decline. For anyone considering taking up a creative hobby, the message from science is clear: it’s never too late to start.
