Language learning and brain health: what the research found

People say learning a language keeps the brain sharp. Some of that is tested and some is not. This guide covers four studies we checked at the source, with links. It also says what each one cannot tell you.

One week of Gaelic changed attention switching

Thomas Bak and colleagues at Edinburgh University tested 33 people on a one-week Scottish Gaelic course. They also tested 34 controls. Sixteen controls took a course of the same length that was not a language. Eighteen carried on as usual. Ages ran from 18 to 78.

After the week, the Gaelic group improved at attention switching. The control groups did not. Seventeen of the Gaelic learners were tested again nine months later. Everyone who practised five hours a week or more was still above their starting score. Those who practised four hours or less had mixed results.

Source: Bak et al., PLoS One, 2016.

Limits: the group was small. It tested attention, not memory or dementia. The nine-month check covered only half the learners.

Two languages and the age dementia starts

A 2014 review in Behavioural Neurology looked at studies from Toronto, Montreal and Hyderabad. In Toronto and Hyderabad, speaking two or more languages went with later Alzheimer's disease. The delay was up to five years. The Montreal study found a protective effect for people who spoke at least four languages. It also found one for immigrants who spoke two.

Source: Freedman et al., Behavioural Neurology, 2014.

A later Hyderabad study looked at 115 people with mild cognitive impairment at one memory clinic. Bilingual patients first noticed problems at 65.2 years on average. Monolingual patients noticed at 58.1. That is 7.4 years later. Years of education did not predict the age.

Source: Ramakrishnan et al., Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders, 2017.

The same Hyderabad group studied 193 people with frontotemporal dementia. Bilingualism went with a later start of the behavioural type, by about six years. It made no difference to the types that affect language.

Source: Alladi et al., Neuropsychologia, 2017.

Limits: these studies compare people who already spoke two languages, often from childhood. The patients were clinic attenders. The results do not show that picking up a language at 40 or 60 delays dementia. The authors of a Heidelberg trial protocol say evidence so far is sparse and contradictory. That trial teaches Spanish to adults aged 65 to 80 for three weeks. We have read the protocol, not results.

Source: Grossmann et al., BMC Geriatrics, 2021.

What you can take from this

A short, intense language course changed attention in a small test. Practice time seemed to matter. The link with dementia comes from observational studies of lifelong bilinguals.

None of these studies tested practising with a partner. They tested courses and lifelong use. This guide is not medical advice.

FAQ

Do I need to be bilingual from childhood to get any benefit?

The attention study included adults up to 78 who were new to Gaelic. The dementia studies looked at lifelong speakers. Nobody has shown the same effect for late learners.

How much practice did the Gaelic learners do?

The ones who kept their gains practised five hours a week or more. Our guide on how long to practise each week covers a realistic plan.

Where can I practise near me?

See language tables in Surrey or London, or take the level quiz first.