Some research has suggested keeping the brain active such as playing an instrument in adulthood can simulate the brain and reduce the risk of dementia.
The researched showed that extensive musical instrumental training such as playing Piano, Guitar or Violin even in amateur musicians provides a cognitive benefit that can last throughout a person’s life. Hanna-Pladdy, assistant professor of neurology at Emory University found in her study that even if an individual did not continue playing music as they aged, they still performed better at tasks of object-naming and rapid mental processing and flexibility than those who didn’t play a musical instrument at all.
You can still teach music to an older person who has already shown sign of dementia and it’s harder but possible to modify the brain in the older person. The emotional response that people get from listening or playing music and the brain chemicals that get released in the process are distinct from the structural changes in the brain that playing music over time may instigate, scientists said.