A study from Harvard Medical School found that adults who engage in “life-long learning” are healthier and happier. The brain is like the body – it must be exercised regularly to stay in shape. Researchers found that learning any kind of new skill, not just an academic subject, can spur new brain cell growth in adults. In older adults, researchers found that those who took adult education classes were nearly 20% less likely to develop dementia and showed slower cognitive aging.