Aging leads to a physiological decline in many cognitive functions, even without pathological
processes. These cognitive changes affect the elderly's quality of life and well-being, impacting
their daily activities. Reading is among the skills most affected by aging since it requires the
integrity of several cognitive components, such as linguistic, visual, oculomotor, and attentional
processes. While language remains largely intact, visual and cognitive components may decline,
affecting reading efficiency. Different components of attention are involved in the reading
process, but their roles in age-related changes in reading remain unclear. Study 1 aimed to
investigate the presence of an actual decline in reading and the causal relationships between
attention and this potential age-related decline. 120 neurologically healthy older adults (age range
62-75) underwent neuropsychological assessment to investigate global cognitive functioning,
reading skills, crowding, and attention components. Results showed a mediation effect of many
attentive components and a moderator effect of crowding and visuospatial attention. Study 2
aimed to explore the effectiveness of an eye-guided video game to improve visuomotor, visual,
and attentional skills involved in reading in healthy older adults. Forty healthy participants aged
over 65 underwent a battery of cognitive, visual, attentional, and reading tests to assess their
initial cognitive performance and register changes after a training period. Only half of them
(experimental group) performed training sessions with custom-built eye-guided video games;
each session lasted 45 minutes and was administered twice a week for 5 weeks. Only participants
in the experimental group improved their reading and visual abilities (a decrease in reading time,
a reduction in the number and duration of fixations, and an increase in the amplitude of saccades).
Unexpectedly, no changes in attentional parameters were observed. Our findings indicate that
eye-guided video games enhance reading abilities in healthy older individuals, without training
reading directly.


Keywords: Reading, Healthy Aging, Attention, Neuropsychological Assessment, Video games,
eye movements.