We have all heard “use it or lose it” for our bodies. When it comes to keeping your body strong, you lift weights, run a few miles, or do pushups. But your cognitive function follows the same rule: stop using it, you will lose it.

A recent MIT Media Lab study found that people who lean too much on ChatGPT and similar AI tools can dull their mental ability, accelerating AI cognitive decline. Let’s break down what they discovered and how you can keep your cognitive muscles in top shape.

What the MIT Study Really Showed

Researchers at MIT strapped volunteers into EEG caps and compared heavy AI users with folks who only called on ChatGPT now and then. The takeaway was clear:

  • Weaker connections in brain areas are tied to critical thinking.
  • Memory slips when people relied on AI for writing tasks.
  • Less creative spark on tests that measure new ideas.

In plain terms: if you outsource your thinking, parts of your brain stop working and an unused brain cell don’t help you solve problems, remember details or come up with ideas. Over time, this loss of your cognitive reserve makes it harder to tackle challenges on your own.

Make AI Your Sous Chef, Not Your Brain

AI is a tool similar to what a sous chef is to a chef; it’s your digital sous chef, not a replacement for you doing things or for replacing you. Remember when we had to memorize phone numbers? I used to know my neighbor’s number by heart. Now we tap a name on our screens and forget that simple skill. Relying on AI has the same risk of putting our mental muscles on ice.

Simple Brain Training Habits to Keep Your Mind in Shape

Working your brain alongside AI keeps your neural connections firing:

  • Daily memory reps to boost memory retention. Memorize a grocery list, a short poem, or a phone number without using your phone.
  • Creative sprints as a brain exercise. Set a 10‑minute timer and free-write ideas with no AI until the bell rings.
  • Critical thinking drills. Do a quick logic puzzle, debate both sides of an argument, or play a strategy game.
  • Digital detox day. Take one day a week off screens to let your natural problem-solving fire up.
  • Blend workflows. Draft with pen and paper, then refine with ChatGPT, or start with AI and polish by hand. Stay active in each step.

These habits aren’t time consuming. A few minutes a day can make a big difference.

AI is powerful. But left unchecked, it’s a fast track to mental atrophy and even social isolation. We have seen social media’s unintended fallout over two decades; AI has only been out for 2.5 years and it is already causing cognitive loss, loneliness and emotional harm posing new AI mental health challenges. Let’s not wait another decade to face the consequences of overuse.