We all used to knit.
And when I say we all used to knit, I mean we were all knit a snowman in primary school for Christmas… only to go home to our mothers and beg them to finish (that was the story with me anyway).
However, a new study has found that knitting could help immensely with chronic pain, as well as depression.
In a report called The Health Benefits of Knitting, it said that: “Knitting dramatically improves physical and mental health, like lowering blood pressure, slowing the onset of dementia, distracting from chronic pain, keeping arthritic fingers moving as well as combating depression and anxiety.
“It is an activity that can be continued into extreme old age. It is a sociable activity that helps overcome isolation and loneliness, too often a feature of old age. It is a skill that can continue when sight and strength are diminished.”
The recent study linked up with another study by the Mayo Clinic in 2012, which found that people who knitted were 30 to 50 percent less likely to have mild cognitive impairment.
In one case, an 85-year-old woman said: “I can now only manage to knit children’s jumpers. I like doing it as it’s the only thing left that I can do in which I am productive and contributing as I live in a nursing home.
“It is something, which staff and other residents can talk with me about and it helps ease my pain.”
We all of a sudden think we need more knitted hats right now (even though it’s the middle of summer)…
