Description
Puzzle-solving is a popular activity that has several benefits, mainly related to cognitive skills and entertainment.
Possible Benefits
- May decrease anxiety
- May decrease stress
- May boost your mood
- May stimulate cognitive function
- May promote problem-solving skills
- May improve sharpness
- May stimulate creativity
Required Equipment
Puzzles
A timer (optional)
How to Do It
This habit could not be simpler. All you have to do is to get some puzzles with images and themes that interest you - that's it!
You can find a wide variety of sizes, images, and shapes.
Why it works
- This habit promotes the activation of the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that deals with planning, creativity, decision making and thinking.
- It stimulates the ability to identify the steps needed to reach the desired outcome.
- When you are fully immersed in the activity, the mind "let’s go" of intrusive thoughts and concerns.
Time Commitment
20-60 minutes
Suggested Frequency
Once per week
Time of Day
Any
At night it can help induce a state of relaxation
Possible Side Effects
None known.
Make sure you keep the small pieces out of the reach of children.
Tips
- Want a bigger challenge? Look for 3D puzzles!
- To make it more fun, you can use a timer and set it as fast as possible.
- Do it with friends or family to increase the benefits.
Supporting Studies and Articles
Expand Collapse- An online investigation of the relationship between the frequency of word puzzle use and cognitive function in a large sample of older adults. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30443984/
- Jigsaw Puzzles As Cognitive Enrichment (PACE) - the effect of solving jigsaw puzzles on global visuospatial cognition in adults 50 years of age and older: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5588550/
- Modal preferences in creative problem solving. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22806663/
- Puzzle-Solving Activity as an Indicator of Epistemic Confusion. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6365428/
- Effect of a puzzle on the process of students' learning about cardiac physiology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27516391/
