{"id":22072,"date":"2025-04-15T12:42:09","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T10:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/how-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language\/"},"modified":"2025-04-15T12:42:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T10:42:09","slug":"how-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/how-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language\/","title":{"rendered":"How your brain changes when you learn a new language"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"22072\" class=\"elementor elementor-22072 elementor-19271\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a8f6c44 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a8f6c44\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-5652f85\" data-id=\"5652f85\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-031908c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"031908c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Learning a language isn&#8217;t just a useful skill for traveling, working, or watching shows without subtitles. It\u2019s actually a full workout for your brain. Multiple scientific studies have shown that speaking more than one language has deep and positive effects on how your brain is structured and how it works. But\u2026 what exactly is happening up there?<\/em><\/p><ul><li><strong>Your brain gets stronger<\/strong> (yes, like a muscle)<\/li><\/ul><p>The brain isn&#8217;t a muscle, but it works like one: the more you use it, the stronger it becomes. Learning a new language stimulates brain areas related to memory, attention, and problem-solving. This boosts your <strong>neuroplasticity<\/strong>\u2014your brain\u2019s ability to adapt, reorganize, and learn new things at any age.<\/p><ul><li><strong>You become better at making decisions<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Language learning forces you to compare structures, search for synonyms, translate in real-time, and think before speaking. All of this trains your brain to <strong>evaluate options<\/strong>\u00a0more quickly. Bilingual people tend to be more rational and less impulsive when making decisions\u2014even in their native language.<\/p><ul><li><strong>It improves your memory and concentration<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Studying vocabulary, grammar rules, or idioms strengthens your <strong>working memory<\/strong> (the kind you use to hold on to short-term information). On top of that, people who speak multiple languages are often better at <strong>concentrating<\/strong>\u00a0and ignoring distractions.<\/p><ul><li><strong>Greater empathy and mental flexibility<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Learning a new language also opens your mind culturally. When you understand new ways of expressing ideas, you begin to understand new ways of thinking. This helps develop your <strong>empathy<\/strong> and your ability to see the world from multiple perspectives.<\/p><ul><li><strong>It protects your brain as you age<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><p>Studies have shown that bilingual or multilingual people have a <strong>lower risk of developing dementia<\/strong>\u00a0or <strong>Alzheimer\u2019s<\/strong>. Why? Because their brains have more alternative \u00abpathways\u00bb to process information, making them more resilient to cognitive decline.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>Learning a language is like going to the gym\u2026 but for your mind!<\/p><p>So the next time you&#8217;re memorizing irregular verbs or trying to understand a song in another language, remember this: <strong>you\u2019re training your brain<\/strong>\u2014making it faster, sharper, and healthier. Learning a foreign language doesn\u2019t just connect you to the world, it connects you to yourself in a smarter way.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Sources<\/span>:<br \/>&#8211; Bialystok, E. (2011). <em>Reshaping the mind: The benefits of bilingualism<\/em>. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology. <br \/>&#8211; Mechelli, A. et al. (2004). <em>Structural plasticity in the bilingual brain<\/em>. Nature. <br \/>&#8211; Craik, F. I. M., Bialystok, E., &amp; Freedman, M. (2010). <em>Delaying the onset of Alzheimer\u2019s disease: Bilingualism as a form of cognitive reserve<\/em>. Neurology. <br \/>&#8211; Kroll, J. F., &amp; Dussias, P. E. (2013). <em>The benefits of multilingualism to the personal and professional development of residents of the US<\/em>. American Academy of Arts and Sciences.<\/p><p><br style=\"font-weight: 400;\" \/><br style=\"font-weight: 400;\" \/><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-2989394 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"2989394\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a702df7\" data-id=\"a702df7\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e74d114 elementor-widget elementor-widget-thim-ekits-social-share\" data-id=\"e74d114\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"thim-ekits-social-share.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"social-swapper social-share-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"thim-social-media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-repeater-item-f032530\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fnovacademia.com%2Fes%2Fhow-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language%2F\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t   title=\"Facebook\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fab fa-facebook-f\"><\/i>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-repeater-item-4472730\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnovacademia.com%2Fes%2Fhow-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language%2F&#038;text=How%20your%20brain%20changes%20when%20you%20learn%20a%20new%20language\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t   title=\"Twitter\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fab fa-twitter\"><\/i>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-repeater-item-93850fb\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fnovacademia.com%2Fes%2Fhow-your-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-new-language%2F&#038;title=How%20your%20brain%20changes%20when%20you%20learn%20a%20new%20language&#038;summary=&#038;source=Learning%20a%20language%20isn%26%238217%3Bt%20just%20a%20useful%20skill%20for%20traveling%2C%20working%2C%20or%20watching%20shows%20without%20subtitles.%20It%E2%80%99s%20actually%20a%20full%20workout%20for%20your%20brain.%20Multiple%20scientific%20studies%20have%20shown%20that%20speaking%20more%20than%20one%20language%20has%20deep%20and%20positive%20effects%20%26hellip%3B%20\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t   title=\"LinkedIn\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"fab fa-linkedin-in\"><\/i>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learning a language isn&#8217;t just a useful skill for traveling, working, or watching shows without subtitles. It\u2019s actually a full workout for your brain. Multiple scientific studies have shown that speaking more than one language has deep and positive effects &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19278,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_joinchat":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[261],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sobre-novacademia-es"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22072"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22072\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novacademia.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}