Study links ping pong to long term brain health

It increases blood flow to the brain, thus protecting and supporting cognitive function.

Jack Walsh and Gillian Neff

Apr 26, 2025, 3:45 PM

Updated 7 hr ago

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There is significant evidence indicating that various fitness activities can prolong brain health, such as table tennis, doctors say.
Additionally, a new study in the journal "Neurology" shows that someone's risk of developing dementia before the age of 65 is 24% higher if they have metabolic syndrome. Ping pong can be an early tool to combat it.
Researchers analyzed over a decade's worth of data on over 2 million people. The authors say they can’t be sure metabolic syndrome caused dementia – just that there seems to be a link between the two.
Games like fast-moving ping pong improve sensory processing, motor control and executive functions. And researchers say, like other aerobic activities, playing ping pong increases blood flow to the brain, and therefore regions of the brain responsible for thinking and memory.