How do puzzles increase Brain Health, creativity and critical thinking?
Jigsaw puzzles had come a long way since 1762, when a sailor, John Spilsbury, created the first jigsaw puzzle.
Originally known as a “dissected puzzle,” Spilsbury made one out of his world map to help the local schoolchildren learn geography.
The foundation for jigsaw puzzles was set for them to be a fun way to learn and grow by exercising and expanding the human mind.
It was an instant hit, and puzzle solving soon became popular among children, eventually progressing into a favourite activity with adults too.
In the early days, wood was the material of choice for making custom puzzles, as not everyone could afford them or have the time to do them.
The puzzles are available in various materials now, including the original material—wood.
The long journey of jigsaw puzzles till today is a clear testament to their multi-fold benefits, including the constructive fun they provide to the players or doers.
Jigsaws are primarily exercised for the mind, enhancing and improving the health of the mind effortlessly, whereas most doers are oblivious to the deep-reaching benefits.
Understanding the Benefits of Brain Puzzles:
1. Memory Improvement:
Human brains are complex machines that medical scientists continue working on to decipher and understand, not just because of human curiosity but also to find cures for the many ailments of the brain.
But the one typical result of the research is that regular exercise of the brain can help prevent conditions like dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and more, all of which primarily affect memory.
Jigsaw puzzles and other brain puzzles exercise the memory storage portion of the brain, slowing down its degeneration.
If one begins the puzzle-solving exercise early in life, it can prevent the decline in our mental faculties, thus helping to keep these diseases at bay.
Puzzles help improve the thought process by reinforcing the brain cells and their interconnectivity.
Our short-term memory handles remembering colours and shapes, and jigsaw puzzles significantly benefit this function of our brain.
Memory enhancement ultimately helps people in the later stages of life when they keep forgetting things or have a less visual perception of faces and things.
2. Increase Creative Thinking:
Problem-solving is one ability that is essential at all ages and stages of life, whether in school, at work, or in life itself.
Many schools have begun training children in this crucial life skill, which can be further reinforced and enhanced with the help of jigsaw puzzles.
Puzzles require creative thinking ability to solve them by approaching them from different angles.
Thinking outside the box is essentially creative thinking, which needs to do a puzzle and help deal with problems and issues in life.
Solving brain puzzles like jigsaw puzzles, word puzzles, etc., is an excellent exercise for the mind and body, considering that the mind orchestrates all bodily organs and functions.
Several academic studies and research have documented this fact.
3. Increase Critical Thinking:
Critical thinking stems from the ability to think creatively, a necessary skill for navigating life’s journey, from studies to career to personal life and relationships.
The majorly dominant fields comprise four categories: Science; Technology; Engineering; and Mathematics, that is, S.T.E.M., with their shared focus and requirement for critical thinking.
Logical thinking is often not paid much attention to as a separate subject in school or college.
The fact is that it exists all around us and is another essential skill that needs to be nurtured.
Solving puzzles foster logical thinking to assess approaches and outline strategies.
It promotes creative thinking to successfully navigate that strategy by developing approaches when faced with a challenge.
Both skills conjoin to form critical thinking.
Critical thinking puzzles train you to think more creatively and smartly to develop varying theories and methods.
Additional benefits:
The added benefits of doing jigsaws are increased I.Q. (Intelligence Quotient).
Puzzle-solving releases dopamine, which makes us feel good and helps us improve our memory with enhanced concentration and focus.
It also releases the ‘feel good hormone’ dopamine, a neurotransmitter responsible for enhancing motor skills and concentration.
The large jigsaws ensure one has to remember the picture and put the right pieces to complete it within a time limit.
If you have not tried your hand at jigsaw puzzles, it’s time to buy one and begin investing in maintaining a healthy and youthful brain.
You can also get custom puzzles that are personalized and developed as per your specific requirements.
Final thoughts:
Puzzles Australia gives you many options in selecting high-quality jigsaw puzzles.
There’s one for every age and every mood.
Join the jigsaw puzzle pieces to reveal a life of peace and joy.
