FENS Forum study finds multilingualism tied to younger brain connectivity
Technology
Turns out, picking up new languages might actually help keep your brain younger.
A fresh study shared at the FENS Forum 2026 looked at 728 people and found that multilingual folks had brain connectivity similar to much younger individuals.
Researchers used advanced scans and AI to spot these patterns.
More languages associated with younger brains
The more languages you know, the bigger the benefit, especially if you're fluent in four.
Bilinguals' brains looked about six years younger than expected, trilinguals gained a seven-year edge, and those speaking four languages saw their brains act 13 years younger.
Starting young and reaching higher fluency seems to boost these perks even more.