Religion on the brain

Science and Theology News reports:

Going to church may not only be good for the soul, but good for the mind as well, say Canadian and Israeli researchers who found that religious practice may slow the insidious progress of Alzheimer’s disease.
“We learned that Alzheimer’s patients with higher levels of spirituality or higher levels of religiosity may have a significantly slower progression of cognitive decline,” said study author Dr. Yakir Kaufman, director of neurology at Sarah Herzog Memorial Hospital in Jerusalem... Data analysis revealed “higher levels of religiosity and private religious practices were significantly correlated with slower rates of cognitive decline”

It's still unclear, however, if this is because of something intrinsic to religion and spirituality, or if any type of mental activity has the same effect. WebMD adds that another possible reason can be that religion can help people deal with stress.