7 Health Benefits of Knitting

It’s hard to deny that there is something soothing in the click-clacking of knitting needles, and there are many others, including scientists and healthcare researchers, who would agree. Knitting is beneficial to your health in many ways, not the least of which is that all those knitted items can help keep you warm through the chillier months. But there are other health benefits that come with knitting—some you might not expect!

Read on to learn why you should pick up those needles and click-clack away!

1. Knitting can relieve depression. The repetitive nature of the craft helps release serotonin, the brain chemical that staves off depression and dark thoughts.
2. Knitting can reduce anxiety. From the repetitive nature to the counting involved, knitting works several ways to relieve anxiety. Even those with obsessive compulsive disorder and anorexia have found knitting to be a great way to help them manage the anxieties that are at the heart of their conditions.
3. Knitting is good for your brain. In a Mayo Clinic study in 2012, researchers found that seniors who engaged in crafting of some sort—including knitting—were 30-50% less likely to suffer from cognitive impairment. Cognitive impairment is the intermediate stage between normal aging and dementia. Knitting keeps the brain active and working quickly and efficiently.
4. Knitting can help build and sustain self-esteem. The pride in a job well done. The satisfaction of completing a difficult project or learning a new technique or stitch. The sense of accomplishment when you see someone wearing something you’ve made. All can help boost and maintain your self-esteem. And a healthy self-esteem is important to your overall physical and mental health.
5. Knitting can help cure or combat insomnia. Again, this benefit is due to the repetitive nature of the knitting. All those clicks and clacks and the meditative state into which many knitters fall combine to allow you to wind down and settle in for the night.
6. Knitting can help you unplug and regroup. By its very nature, knitting is a low-tech activity. The chance it affords to unplug your head from technology, and regroup in the very non-digital world is a refreshing change of pace for many who spend hours of every day focused on a screen.
7. Knitting can help your social life. Whether you join a knitting club, make friends with the gal behind the counter at the yarn shop, or decide to knit for a charitable cause, knitting brings people together—or at least offers opportunities to get together. Turn a solitary occupation into a social one, and reap the benefits new friends can bring.

The truth is that knitting can bring you and others a great deal of health and happiness. So if you’re looking for a way to improve your well-being, remember that you can knit your way to a better tomorrow. Learn to knit today!