Eating the right foods and participating in playful activities have been proven to increase your brain power. Now there are many apps (for cell phones and tablets) that can do the same.

Our brain’s grey matter is like an information center where the computation of hearing, seeing, and speech resides. White matter’s like a series of cables joining the centers together. Over time the white and gray matter shrink, weakening our memory, concentration and other skills. Fortunately, our brain’s a muscle, the more we use it the better off we’ll be.

The National Institute of Aging and the National Institute of Nursing Research funded the ACTIVE study. They tested the efficiency of mental exercises with 2,802 senior citizens. For five to six weeks, some of the participants were asked to attend 10 brain training classes. At the end of the study, 87 percent of the speed-training class and 74 percent of the reasoning classes saw mental improvement that lasted five years.

How to Increase Brain Power with Apps

To improve your mental power, try a Mindful brain games app for brain exercises on the go. Want to train your brain? Consider some of the suggestions listed below.

1. Lumosity Brain Trainer. If you’re looking for an all-around great app for mental exercise try the Lumosity’s Brain Trainer. This app includes 10 games to enhance flexibility, speed, and problem-solving skills. They have a corresponding website too.
2. Memory Trainer. To improve your memory and concentration skills consider Urbian’s Memory Trainer. You can complete memory sessions from your phone and track your progress as well.
3. Apps for math. If you want to improve your computing skills try the Brain Exerciser app. It has math-related programs including “Add like Mad,” “Number Breaker” and “Balloon Solver.” Another great game for better math mental power is Sudoku. Many companies like Finger Arts and Genina have their own app versions of Sudoku.
4. Apps for words. To expand your vocabulary and improve your thinking capacity, consider Wordplay by Quaerendo Games. It works similar to Boggle and is a great game to play on the go. Another genre of apps to consider is crossword puzzles. The New York Times is famous for their crosswords and their Crossword app.