The benefits of Lego for people with dementia
Everyone is familiar with Lego, those small colourful building blocks that bring endless hours of fun to children all over the globe, but did you know they’re not just for children, but can also be beneficial to adults too? Especially those with dementia.
We have previously blogged about the benefits of card games, dominoes and chess for people with conditions such as dementia as they help keep the mind focused and provide a much-needed distraction for many. Lego can help in similar ways and makes a nice alternative when you’re fed up of cards and dominoes.
Lego is great for working the cognitive functions such as identifying colours and shapes and there are also a variety of different sizes available too, so great for improving motor skills. You can pick up traditional small bricks, Duplo blocks, which are twice the length and height of the traditional ones and Mega Bloks, which come in maxi and mini sizes. The maxi ones are great for elderly people who might have limited mobility in their hands.
Using Lego enables a person with dementia to get creative with what they want to build. Whether it’s a simple tower of bricks or something more complicated, the possibilities are endless. For those up for a challenge there are also lots of model kits available.
Playing with Lego is also great for family bonding too. If you’re all getting together, why not spend time as a family building something? It’s great to get all the generations around the table and it helps your loved-one with socialisation.
Being fully absorbed in an activity such as building something out of Lego can be a great stress buster and almost be therapeutic too. It’s increasing in popularity as a mindfulness tool for adults and research by the company revealed that 86% of adult Lego fans say it helps them feel more relaxed.
Your loved-one can get lost for hours trying to build something out of those colourful little bricks, and even better, playing with them can help trigger some happy childhood memories too.
