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How Knitting May Be Rewiring Your Brain
The rhythmic click of needles. The softness of yarn running over fingertips. The satisfying logic of knit, purl, repeat. Knitting — and other so-called “grandma hobbies” — is making a comeback, especially among younger generations. According to Eventbrite data, Gen Z’s interest in “grannycore” gatherings, such as knitting circles and needlework workshops, has surged in recent months, driven in part by a search for relief from digital burnout.
But the benefits go beyond nostalgia. Recent studies suggest that slow, tactile tasks, such as knitting, may activate brain systems in ways that support long-term cognitive health in various ways, including engaging memory, attention, and motor function, while helping to regulate stress. Here’s what the science says.
The power of new skills
If you are already an accomplished knitter, don’t pat yourself on the back just yet. The cognitive benefits of activities like knitting aren’t about the task itself — they’re about the process of learning something new.
“If you’ve never knitted, then knitting is perfect,” says Pascual-Leone. “But if you are a professional knitter, then not so much. It can give you a sense of accomplishment, which is valuable, but the goal is to make your brain work on solving a challenge it has never done before.”
The good news? The cognitive challenge doesn’t have to be big or lofty, says Pascual-Leone: “What is actually critical is to give your brain a challenge it hasn’t yet mastered.”
How knitting activates your brain
While meditation and puzzles also offer brain benefits, knitting uniquely combines fine motor coordination, creative planning, and rhythmic bilateral movement — all of which engage different brain systems at once. This kind of creativity in any capacity is helpful, says Emily Sharp, a licensed therapist at NY Art Therapy.
It also engages the brain’s dopamine system in ways that can improve focus and potentially delay age-related cognitive decline, says Alvaro Pascual-Leone, professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and chief medical officer at Linus Health.
How hobbies support healthy aging
Cognitive decline begins to develop decades before there’s any outward evidence, says Lakelyn Eichenberger, a gerontologist and caregiving advocate at Home Instead, which is why engaging in mentally stimulating hobbies throughout one’s life is so important.
“Challenging your brain in these ways will be really good for you in terms of long-term brain health,” she says.
Eichenberger adds that “people who engage in these activities often report themselves as happier, healthier, and more satisfied with life.”
