How Hobbies Help (And Heal) Us

Standing on a stage, belting out a ballad at a local Chinese festival, is a core memory for Kien Vuu. When he was just six years old, he was the youngest member of his family band—and one of its star singers. While he was too young to understand the words he was singing—from ‘Part of the Game’, a 1970s song about heartbreak by Hong Kong pop group The Wynners—he did understand how much he loved performing music, especially with his family.

Vuu did not grow up to become a professional singer. Instead, he chose medical school and became Kien Vuu, MD, a longevity doctor and assistant professor of health sciences at UCLA. Yet he never lost his love for singing, so he makes time regularly for karaoke sessions with his own children.

“Singing with people has always been one of my favourite hobbies. In fact, I can still remember all the words to that old song,” he says. “Karaoke is one of those things that just lights me up and brings me joy.”

Such things are vital, and we do mean in a medical sense. Just ask Dr Vuu: “In my work as a doctor and researcher, I’ve become convinced that having hobbies is an essential part of living and ageing well,” he says.

Sanam Hafeez, PsyD, a neuropsychologist at New York’s Columbia University, agrees. “I feel very strongly about the importance of having hobbies,” she says. Hers include practising Pilates and learning Italian. “The benefits are immense, both physically and cognitively.”

Dr Vuu easily rattles off the benefits he gets from singing: In addition to boosting his mood, he says, singing helps him bond with his family and feel connected to his Chinese heritage, improves his memory and mental health, lowers his stress and even gives him a bit of cardio.

“I’m a very active performer when I sing! It definitely gets my heart rate up … and probably embarrasses my kids,” he says, laughing.

For a small investment, that’s a lot of return. And the best news is that all these great mental and physical health benefits can come from any activity that “lights you up,” as Dr Vuu puts it.

The positive health outcomes of hobbies are available to everyone, says  Scott Kaiser, MD, the director of geriatric cognitive health at the Pacific Brain Health Center at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California. Dr Kaiser’s passion project is traveling, but whether you prefer hiking, sudoku, dancing, watercolour painting or playing piano, know that your hobbies are not only making you happier, they’re also making you healthier. 

Benefits for Your Body

A pervasive and harmful myth is that engaging in hobbies is self-indulgent or even a waste of time. Nothing could be further from the truth, Dr Kaiser says. The benefits you reap will depend on your hobby—taking up jogging, for instance, will benefit your cardiovascular health more than, say, crossword puzzles, while those may improve your cognitive health. The point is that nearly all hobbies can provide measurable positive health benefits.

“Doing an enjoyable hobby releases endorphins, the feel-good chemicals in the brain, while lowering cortisol, the so-called stress hormone,” Dr Vuu says. “This then lowers blood pressure, reduces systemic inflammation, im­­proves sleep, boosts the immune system, improves cardiac health and increases energy—which in turn can kick off a whole positive cycle of healthier behaviours.”

The science backs this up. A 2021 meta-analysis of multiple studies found strong evidence that engaging in leisure activities can improve health by protecting against coronary heart disease, cognitive decline and dementia, as well as age-related physical decline including chronic pain, frailty and disability. The report, published in the journal Lancet Psychiatry, found that for people who were suffering from a chronic illness, doing a hobby helped them manage their symptoms and even slowed the progression of their illness.

But another of the researchers’ findings is perhaps the most compelling: the strong relationship between doing leisure activities and increased longevity. A different study conducted last year quantified the impact, finding that older adults have a 19 per cent lower risk of mortality when they engage in regular leisure activities.

Benefits for Your Brain

In addition to providing protection against dementia, hobbies improve our neuroplasticity: the ability of the brain’s neural networks to change, adapt and make new connections. Dr Hafeez explains that hobbies take advantage of this flexibility and help your brain create new connections, which can help you in areas beyond just that particular skill. This may be the reason why people who play a musical instrument often do better in math.

“One of the coolest things I’ve learnt is that regularly doing things you find enjoyable causes biochemical changes in the brain, and we can measure these in the lab,” Dr Vuu says.

“With the brain,” adds Dr Hafeez, “it’s a ‘use it or lose it’ type of situation, especially as we get older. So you always want to be exercising it to keep it strong, and hobbies are a really fun way to do that.”

Benefits for Your Spirit

In many ways, hobbies make us happier. People who made a conscious effort each day to spend time doing hobbies (no matter what they were) showed an average boost of 8 per cent in well-being and a 10 per cent drop in stress and anxiety, according to a 2023 study published in the Journal of Personality. Similarly, folks who reported having at least one hobby were found to have fewer depressive symptoms and higher levels of happiness, health and life satisfaction, according to a 2023 study published in Nature Medicine.

“On a fundamental level, humans need meaning, something that gives them a sense of purpose. And being able to do what you’re passionate about really contributes to that,” Dr Hafeez says. “Engaging in hobbies lowers your risk of depression and boosts your self-esteem.”

And perhaps the most underestimated benefit of hobbies is their impact on our social well-being. “Humans have always thrived within a community; we need that,” Dr Kaiser says. “When we don’t get it, all aspects of our health can suffer.” Indeed, chronic loneliness is worse for your health than smoking 15 cigarettes per day, according to a 2020 analysis published by the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Hobbies are a perfect way to find that sense of community, make new friends and catch up with old ones. Many hobbies are done in a group—think choirs, knitting circles and recreational sports teams. And even when you’re not actively doing the hobby, it can still provide opportunities to be social, by taking classes to improve your skills, say, or participating in online chat groups.

How Hobbies Lower Stress

The brain operates in different states, measured in five main categories of brain waves: alpha, beta, gamma, theta and delta. Most of the time, our brains are in a default ‘work’ state, characterized by beta and gamma brain waves. This is when we’re using our brains to solve problems and focus on tasks, which requires us to stay in an alert, active state. This is an essential role, for sure, but not one you want to stay in for too long, as it raises cortisol levels in the body, increasing feelings of stress and anxiety, Dr Vuu explains.

“Stress, and the effects it has on the body, is one of the main drivers of chronic disease and depression today,” he says. “Chronic stress fries your nervous system and increases inflammation, which then causes a cascade of negative effects, both mentally and physically.”

How, exactly, does that work? High stress and systemic inflammation impact every system in the body, increasing the risk of almost every type of major disease. A 2015 study published in Future Science OA found that stress caused physiological changes in the brain and the cardiovascular, immune and musculoskeletal systems. This, in turn, increased the risk of everything from mood disorders to autoimmune diseases and dementia.

In all, hobbies are a powerful antidote to stress, causing a cascade of positive changes. “Doing a hobby you enjoy puts your brain into a ‘flow’ state, characterized by alpha and theta waves, which cause you to feel relaxed, less stressed and less anxious,” Dr Vuu says. These brain states are characterized by feelings of deep relaxation, passive focus, creativity, intuition and daydreaming.

What Is (and Isn’t) a Hobby—and How to Pick One

Perhaps you already have a passion and just need permission to do that thing a little more often. (Permission granted!) But maybe you haven’t found a hobby you really love doing yet, or you’d like to add another activity to your roster. And while a hobby is anything you do in your leisure time that brings you joy or pleasure—and a lot of activities fit the bill—not all hobbies are created equal when it comes to health and happiness.

To choose how you spend your time, ask yourself how you feel when you finish doing a particular activity. Many people, for example, will cite scrolling through social media or binge-watching Netflix shows as a hobby, but the reality is that they feel numb or even worse after doing it. These kinds of mindless activities give more of a short-term high and can leave you feeling emptier and more exhausted afterward. 

“I call it popcorn brain, where you go from site to app to site looking for something new because our brains crave novelty,” Dr Hafeez says. “But this is detrimental to your cognitive health in the long run and can very easily become addictive. You’re not really learning anything new; you’re just temporarily distracting yourself.”

The other downside of these types of electronic hobbies, including video and mobile games, says Dr Kaiser, is that they require you to be sedentary, which increases your risk of many health issues. “You need to be aware of that and strive for balance,” says Dr Vuu.

So how do you choose a hobby? “I look at it through the lens of the seven pillars of health: sleep, nutrition, movement, emotional mastery, thoughts/mindset, relationships and purpose,” Dr Vuu says. “We need all of those for a healthy lifestyle.”

Creating an ‘ensemble effect’—doing a hobby that engages you in multiple domains of health and well-being—will compound the positive effects, Dr Kaiser adds. Fortunately, most hobbies check multiple boxes.

What hobbies are right for you will vary greatly based on your personality, interests, abilities and resources, but most of us have a gut instinct of our likes and dislikes. A good way to choose a hobby is by considering which areas of your life you’d like to improve right now. For instance, if you’d like to add more movement to your life, improve your memory and build friendships, you might enjoy a group exercise hobby like Zumba, paddleboard yoga, ‘star tour’ night hikes or an Ultimate Frisbee league.

Or, if you’re interested in improving your mood and finding a sense of purpose, look into a philanthropic hobby like starting a community garden or knitting baby hats for NICU patients. Your options are limited only by your imagination.

Is there a right number of hobbies to have? Again, the answer is individual, Dr Hafeez says. Some people thrive focussing all their energies on the one thing they are super passionate about, while others enjoy a variety of activities. Regardless, it’s a good idea to challenge yourself to try something new every once in a while, as the novelty is good for stimulating new connections in your brain—and with other people.

How to Get the Most Out of Your Time

Hobbies are fun, so why is it so hard to find the motivation to do them? With our busy lives, it can be challenging to find the time and energy. But it’s worth it! Our experts offer these tips for making the most of your hobbies:

• Schedule time on your calendar, just as you would for an appointment. Prioritize your chosen activities by setting a recurring weekly or monthly event.
• Find a friend or a group to do things with. You’ll be much more motivated to go if you know that others are expecting you.
• Adapt to what you have available. Don’t have all the supplies you need for your art project? It’s better to improvise than to cancel.
• Go out of your comfort zone and push yourself to take your hobby to the next level or try something new to keep it fresh.
• Check out free classes or free trials before you commit to an activity or programme you have to pay for.

The trick to enjoying any hobby is to adopt a “no-fail” attitude, Dr Hafeez says. If you’re trying something new, remind yourself that everyone is bad at something the first time they try it, so focus on having fun. For established hobbies, remind yourself that any time spent doing your hobby is beneficial, even if it doesn’t result in an amazing work of art or aria. And even if everything goes sideways, at least you’ll have a good story to tell.

Making the time to do something enjoyable on a regular basis will have a great impact on your life. “I’m a bit of a workaholic,” Dr Kaiser confesses, “but one thing I really love is travel. When taking a trip, I increase my curiosity, learn new things and try new foods. I feel excited and have something to look forward to. I spend time with people I love. I feel challenged and enjoy the adventure. And I build so many great memories, the kind that last a lifetime.” 

Now it’s your turn: Whether you decide to revive an old hobby or start up a whole new one, go find the thing that lights you up and do more of it. Doctor’s orders!