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The brain is a bit like an engine, it deteriorates more quickly through lack of use than regular use. There is nothing wrong with taking a bit of time out to just sit and think, in fact this mild kind of meditation is to be encouraged in our fast-moving world of hustle and bustle, but there is also a requirement for puzzles and educational toys that arouse the brain whilst still being quiet.

Puzzles and educational toys can actually be divided into two age groups - generally speaking: adult and children's games, although just where you draw the line between these age groups depends on the ability of the child. A bright child can start playing chess at eight, nine or ten, whereas that same child might not have a strong enough vocabulary to do crosswords until it is a teenager.

So, if you want to provide adequate stimulation for a child, you could start off with baby Lego and continue adding to the set until the child considers it no longer stimulating (that is, no longer interesting) which could easily take ten years. There is also Meccano, which is for a somewhat older age group than Lego, but overlaps fairly significantly. Interest in Meccano can also last ten years.

At the same time, you could bring in draughts (checkers) and chess. You will have to decide whether Chess is too much for your child at the moment, in which case you can carry on with draughts and reintroduce Chess a year later. As the child becomes a teenager, the line blurs and teenagers might prefer adult games to children's games.

Adult puzzles and educational toys are quite varied. Most hobbies could be called educational in some way or another, although for the purpose of this piece, I will stick with adult puzzles and educational toys that can be played sitting down, say on a regular journey into work or during the lunch break.

There is the Rubik Cube and numerous variations on the theme. Lots of people find that struggling to solve the Rubik Cube when struggling with a problem, assists them solve the difficulty. Some say that this works by diversion.

Crossword puzzles are good for distraction and will help keep words that you do not use frequently on the tip of your tongue. Some people say that you ought not not look words up, but I disagree. If you look a word up in the dictionary a few of times, you will remember it and that has to do you some good.

Sudoku is a numbers game which is also played in a square like a crossword puzzle. Sudoku puzzles are rated on difficulty from one to five. One is very easy, whilst five is very difficult. They require a certain amount of lateral thinking and deduction to solve. They are very good because like a crossword, you can pick them up for ten minutes and set them down again.

If you like Chess or Bridge, these puzzles are also very useful for improving your game or just helping you to maintain a degree of skill if you do not play so much any more. Crossword puzzles, Sudoku, Chess and Bridge puzzles can all be discovered in lots of the quality newspapers, so you can keep up with the news and stimulate your mind with puzzles and educational toys at the same time by buying a good newspaper.