It is known that prolonged stays in space affect physical health. But could they also affect intellectual performance? A study suggests that astronauts have memory and attention lapses after six months on the space station.
Basically, the 25 astronauts tested, in orbit as well as before and after their stay up there, took more time to accomplish tasks requiring reasoning, attention or memory, when they were on the space station.
Slower but just as good
On the other hand, their results in these tests were as good in orbit as on Earth.
After returning to Earth, some of the indicators took longer than others to return to normal. However, no indicator showed any form of cognitive decline.
The last few decades have allowed us to build a fairly consistent medical literature on the effects of microgravity on physiology, such as muscle loss, bone density, and even increased risks of heart problems. But cognitive problems remained a blind spot, justify the authors of this research, published on November 19 in the journal Frontiers in Physiology.
