Jindai Yasushi, a team manager at Japan’s Kumon Institute of Education, was discussing a new brain-training program with Peconic Landing executives yesterday morning when he made a startling revelation about his own cognitive health.

Yasushi, 45, said that when he began using the technology about a year ago, a cognitive assessment estimated his brain age at approximately 65. After a year of daily mental exercises, he said, the same system assessed his brain age at just 35.

The apparent 30-year improvement drew expressions of astonishment from those gathered around a Peconic Landing conference table, where a delegation from Japan was meeting with senior administrators to discuss the future of cognitive wellness and dementia care.

While Yasushi’s results could not be independently verified by the Sun, his account offered a dramatic illustration of the possibilities that Kumon executives are exploring as they develop a new generation of cognitive exercise programs for older adults.

And Peconic Landing, already recognized nationally for its innovative approach to dementia care, is paying close attention.

The meeting brought together executives from Kumon with Peconic Landing president/CEO Robert Syron and members of his leadership team, and the discussion centered on an intriguing proposition: What if the same principles used to stimulate cognitive activity in people living with dementia could be adapted to help otherwise healthy older adults maintain their mental sharpness, independence and quality of life?

The answer could eventually help reshape how senior living communities approach aging, and give rise to a future in which exercising the brain becomes as routine as exercising the body.

Japan’s decades-long experience with an aging population has helped drive its investment in cognitive health. In 2004, when Kumon began developing its dementia-focused learning program, 19.6% of Japan’s population was 65 or older, compared with just 12.1% in the United States. By 2024, nearly 30% of Japan’s population was 65 or older, compared with 17.9% of Americans, according to demographic figures presented by Kumon executives.

The United States is now confronting a similar demographic shift. By 2029, one in five Americans is projected to be 65 or older, according to presenters, helping explain the growing interest in programs that aim to preserve cognitive function, promote independence and improve quality of life as people age.

A new approach to exercising the brain

Peconic Landing has already embraced SAIDO Learning, a Japanese-developed program that uses simple arithmetic, reading aloud and structured social interaction to engage people living with dementia.

Its Harbor South memory support neighborhood recently earned national recognition as a SAIDO Learning Model Community, the first one in New York state. But Tuesday’s discussion went beyond dementia treatment.

Kumon is developing a separate training method, a SAIDO program for cognitive wellness, designed for older adults who want to maintain or improve cognitive performance before significant impairment develops.

Nicole Sickafoose, a Kumon specialist in cognitive health education, said at Tuesday’s meeting that the program is expected to begin pilot testing at two North American communities in January, with a possible broader launch in the summer of 2027.

The new approach would retain some of SAIDO’s familiar elements, including reading aloud, simple math and social engagement, while adding technology that allows participants to monitor aspects of their brain activity.

One of those tools is called “Thinkie,” a small sensor worn on the forehead that provides visual feedback associated with activity in the brain’s prefrontal cortex, an area involved in attention, planning and other executive functions. As participants perform cognitive exercises, the system displays changes in the signals being measured, giving them immediate feedback.

Kumon representatives said that the goal is not necessarily to solve increasingly difficult problems. Rather, the approach emphasizes something that may seem counterintuitive: Simple calculations performed quickly and with concentration can be particularly useful in engaging the brain.

“The key is not difficulty,” Sickafoose said. “It’s that focused intention.”

Kumon executive officer Masahiro Shimizu said that highly educated older adults sometimes initially dismiss basic arithmetic exercises as childish or insufficiently challenging. Seeing physiological feedback from the exercises, he suggested, could help convince skeptical participants of their potential value.

The Thinkie system includes a tablet application with cognitive exercises, memory games and a brain-age assessment feature. It was that assessment feature that produced Yasushi’s striking personal results. His account illustrates what Kumon hopes to demonstrate through further testing.

From dementia care to cognitive wellness

The proposed program represents an important distinction from SAIDO learning as it is currently practiced in memory care settings. Traditional SAIDO sessions require substantial staff involvement, with facilitators working closely with small groups of participants.

The new cognitive wellness model would allow much of the work to be completed independently at home. Participants would perform brief daily exercises, using workbooks or other materials, and gather once a week for supervised sessions that incorporate the Thinkie sensor, cognitive activities and social interaction.

Sickafoose described a model in which one facilitator could work with about a dozen participants, divided among smaller tables. That could make the program easier for senior living communities to introduce on a larger scale, and could also address a more sensitive issue: the stigma surrounding cognitive decline.

At Peconic Landing, where many residents live independently and maintain active intellectual and social lives, administrators said programs must be introduced carefully.

Residents may be enthusiastic about physical fitness, continuing education and social activities, but less comfortable with an invitation to have their cognitive abilities tested.

“Having ambassadors within the community who are interested in promoting something really brings everybody along,” said Diane Radigan, Peconic Landing’s vice president of member services.

Sickafoose acknowledged that some older adults worry that a poor cognitive assessment could lead administrators to question whether they should continue living independently.

The new program is being designed with those concerns in mind, she said, allowing participants to exercise their brains privately and on their own schedules while retaining opportunities for social engagement.

“None of this is to prevent or to stop something from happening,” Sickafoose said, referring to the possibility that participants may eventually need additional care. “But hopefully, we’re improving the quality of life, and maintaining longevity.”

Privacy emerged as an important question during the meeting. Peconic Landing administrators asked who would have access to participants’ cognitive performance data and whether residents could monitor their own progress without exposing individual scores to the broader community.

Kumon representatives said that the Thinkie  application would allow individuals to review their own results over time, while community administrators could have access to participant information through a separate dashboard. The details of how that access would be managed remained a subject of discussion.

A brain fitness center at Peconic Landing

The Japanese delegation’s visit also revealed that Peconic Landing is pursuing its own ambitious plans to make cognitive fitness a more prominent part of everyday life.

The community has begun introducing SMARTfit, an interactive exercise system that combines physical movement with mental challenges.

Chrissy Viola, Peconic Landing’s lifestyle coordinator, described the technology as a large interactive game board that can challenge participants’ memory, reaction time, speed, coordination and executive functioning. The system is being incorporated into existing fitness programming, with residents invited to explore it over the coming weeks. Eventually, it could become a centerpiece of a dedicated cognitive fitness facility.

Syron said Peconic Landing is planning a substantial expansion over the next three years or so, including improvements to its fitness facilities and the creation of a separate space focused specifically on maintaining and improving cognitive function.

“This is the start of the beginning of us improving our brain fitness program,” Syron said.

The initiative grew partly out of a professional conference Syron and Viola attended in California, where presentations on neuroscience, aging and fitness convinced them that cognitive exercise deserved a more prominent role in the community’s wellness offerings.

Syron said the broader expansion remains in the planning stage and that final decisions about its scale have not been made. But he said the existing fitness center is too small for the needs of a changing retirement community.

The planned improvements could include a substantially larger gym, expanded exercise facilities and a dedicated area for cognitive fitness.

Syron said that the emphasis reflects a generational shift, as older adults increasingly expect senior living communities to offer sophisticated health, fitness and wellness programs.

“We have to evolve with the clientele we’re serving,” he said.