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“Optimizing brain health is the greatest weapon the military can invest in,” observed Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman, Founder and Chief Director of the UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth. “Strengthening brain health ‘left of boom’ – ahead of the threat – helps build an agile, innovative, problem-solving brain. It also enhances resilience ‘right of boom’ for a faster return to readiness. Being proactive matters. And cognitive training in the military matters. Brain fitness is as important as physical fitness, arguably more so.”
“US military leadership is acutely aware of the importance of building warfighters with the resilience to sustain cognitive performance and psychological well-being under extremely demanding conditions,” said lead researcher Leanne Young, PhD, an ARA subject matter expert and engineering director. “This study provides data to support validated, scalable approaches to equipping warfighters to meet these demands.”The researchers enrolled 406 healthy National Guard servicemembers in a multi-arm study with alternating sequences of 90 days of BrainHQ and SMART training, and with waitlist control arms. Training efficacy was evaluated using the BrainHealth Index (BHI), the world’s first validated measure of holistic brain health, comprised of 22 multi-domain assessments to provide an indicator of overall brain health that can track changes in brain health over time.Consistent with prior studies, participants benefitted from training in either BrainHQ or SMART. Improvements were shown across all measures (including cognitive performance and psychological well-being). Good brain health is now recognized as critical to combat readiness and transitions back to civilian life. Early research programs in stress management, mindfulness, and sleep hygiene are now widely deployed across the military. The researchers noted that cognitive training is ready for similar deployment. SMART and BrainHQ are highly scalable solutions useable even in remote locations, supported by rapid growth in data showing efficacy in achieving peak performance, building resilience against injury, and aiding faster and more complete recovery. Their adaptive features permit personalized approaches to cognitive training, much in the way that physical trainers personalize physical training regimens to optimize performance of warfighters and elite athletes.Developed by Center for BrainHealth researchers and tested over two decades, SMART brain training is a neuroscience-based program training cognitive strategies that sharpen focus, reasoning, decision-making, mental flexibility and resilience – to drive real-world benefits like improved strategic thinking and stress management. SMART has demonstrated significant success in more than 30 peer-reviewed studies, including several studies involving first responders, active-duty military personnel and veterans. Results point to enhanced high-level cognitive functions (focus and decision-making), improved psychological health (stress and depression symptoms), engagement in daily life (planning, taking initiative), and ongoing recovery from the effects of chronic PTS and brain injuries. BrainHQ exercises have shown benefits in more than 300 peer-reviewed studies (including eight military studies). Such benefits include gains in cognition (attention, speed, memory, decision-making), in quality of life (depressive symptoms, confidence and control, health-related quality of life) and in real-world activities (health outcomes, balance, driving, workplace activities). BrainHQ is used by leading health plans, medical centers, clinics, and communities, and by elite athletes, the military, first responders, and other organizations focused on split-second peak performance and resilience. Consumers can try a BrainHQ exercise for free daily at https://www.brainhq.comCONTACTS
Posit Science: media@brainhq.com
Center for BrainHealth: stephanie.hoefken@utdallas.ed
ARA: marketinggroup@ara.com
