‘Brain Doping’ May Improve Athletes’ Performance

March 16, 2016

(Nature) –  Working with Halo Neuroscience in San Francisco, California, the sports group is testing whether stimulating the brain with electricity can improve the performance of ski jumpers by making it easier for them to hone their skills. Other research suggests that targeted brain stimulation can reduce an athlete’s ability to perceive fatigue. Such technologies could aid recovery from injury or let athletes try ‘brain doping’ to gain a competitive advantage.  Yet many scientists question whether brain stimulation is as effective as its proponents claim, pointing out that studies have looked at only small groups of people.