EP35: Want a Younger Brain? Learn Another Language!

A massive study involving over 80,000 adults across 27 European countries decisively proves that multilingualism significantly slows down brain aging! Using the Biobehavioral Age Gap (BAGs) metric, researchers found that people who speak two or more languages are half as likely to show signs of accelerated biological aging. This groundbreaking work establishes multilingualism as a robust, scalable lifestyle factor for brain health, encouraging the public to actively learn or maintain their second language skills. References： Amoruso, L., Hernandez, H., Santamaria-Garcia, H., Moguilner, S., Legaz, A., Prado, P., Cuadros, J., Gonzalez, L., Gonzalez-Gomez, R., Migeot, J., Coronel-Oliveros, C., Cruzat, J., Carreiras, M., Medel, V., Maito, M. A., Duran-Aniotz, C., Tagliazucchi, E., Baez, S., García, A. M., & Ibanez, A. (2025). Multilingualism protects against accelerated aging in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of 27 European countries. Nature Aging, 10. Kavanagh, K. (2025). Want a younger brain? Learn another language. [Article excerpt]. Nature. Rothman, J., & Gallo, F. (2025). A multilingual guide to slowing aging. Nature Aging, 10. Venugopal, A., et al. (2024). Protective effect of bilingualism on aging, MCI, and dementia: a community-based study. Alzheimer’s Dement., 20, 2620–2631. -- Hosting provided by SoundOn