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<\/p>\nA healthcare researcher has shared how one common hobby could help reduce your risk of developing dementia by up to 50 per cent – and it also comes with several other health benefits<\/p>\n
One ‘grandma hobby’ has been linked to a 50% less risk of getting dementia (stock image)(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n
A healthcare researcher has shared how taking up one surprising hobby could cut your risk of developing dementia ‘in half’<\/a> while offering a host of other health benefits. Dementia <\/a>is an umbrella term used to describe a decline in cognitive abilities severe enough to interfere with everyday life<\/a>. It’s not a single disease but rather a syndrome caused by a range of conditions that damage the brain.<\/p>\n While there’s no guaranteed method to prevent dementia entirely, health experts suggest that as many as 45 per cent of cases globally could be postponed or avoided through specific lifestyle adjustments.<\/a> And one scientist has highlighted how picking up a particular hobby could dramatically slash your chances of developing the condition ‘in half’.<\/p>\n Neil K. Shah is a healthcare researcher specialising in care for the elderly population. Dubbed ‘America’s chief elder officer’, he’s a National Institutes of Health-funded Principal Investigator working on the YayaGuide AI for Dementia Caregiver Training project, which he launched at Johns Hopkins University <\/a>in Baltimore. He’s also amassed a following of more than 115,200 people on TikTok<\/a>, where he regularly posts evidence-based health insights, including tips on lowering dementia risk.<\/p>\n “This hobby cuts your dementia risk in half: Knitting,” Neal revealed in a recent video that he posted on TikTok. “I’m not exaggerating. Let me show you the science, because I think it’s wild.”<\/p>\n He continued to reveal that, according to a Mayo Clinic study<\/a>, those who knitted and took part in crafts were 30 to 50 per cent less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment \u2014 a stage that comes directly before dementia.<\/p>\n How can knitting prevent dementia?<\/p>\n Although it might seem surprising that a pastime often considered a ‘grandma hobby’ could be so good for our brains, Neil elaborated on exactly why it works. “Knitting forces both the hands into coordinated, complex movement, which builds what scientists call a cognitive reserve,” he explained.<\/p>\n He continued: “The logical side counts the stitches, the creative side reads the pattern. But the brain stuff isn’t just the start.”<\/p>\n Other health benefits of knitting.<\/p>\n Beyond helping to ward off dementia, scientific research has revealed that knitting delivers a host of other advantages, both physically and mentally. To begin with, Neil pointed out that the process of knitting has been shown to ‘kill pain’<\/a> throughout the body.<\/p>\n Neil explained. “Pain isn’t just made in your knee, it’s made in your brain. And your brain can only process so much at once.”<\/p>\n “Knitting floods it with signals that crowd the pain out,” he added. “This is real enough that UK pain clinics now prescribe it.”<\/p>\n Content cannot be displayed without consent<\/p>\n