How houseplants enhance your health

When looking for an unusual, unconventional way of boosting your health, have you considered houseplants?  Not only do these indoor living plants add a touch of greenery to your home or office space but in their own subtle way, they interact with your body and mind to improve the quality and well-being of your life. They simply bring a breath of fresh air and a fresh perspective on life. 

Bringing plants indoors has been done since the early Greeks and Romans starting bringing their plants in from the outdoors. The sight of potted plants add aesthetic beauty to our homes, businesses, and other indoor spaces adding a unique interior landscape which creates a more pleasant and tranquil environment. 

Next time you’re inside an office building or hotel lobby, take a look around and notice the greenery used throughout.  Now, imagine those same spaces without any touch of plant material – there’s quite a difference.  Even within our homes, if we were to remove all plants – real or artificial – it would leave a stark void of any sort of semblance of life being felt within the our interior space.

The multitude of benefits houseplants provide

Maybe you’ve never considered the role houseplants play in promoting our health.  But consider this – why is it when someone is sick or in the hospital, plants are often taken as a token of good will?  Could it be our green potted plants do indeed brighten and bring a sense of renewal when we are not feeling our best? 

Here are other ways in which plants from the outdoors, no matter how big or small, have a role in keeping us healthy:

·      Plants assist us in breathing better

Whenever we inhale we are breathing in oxygen, while exhaling releases carbon dioxide.  Plants however, do just the opposite – during photosynthesis, they absorb carbon dioxide in the air and then release oxygen back into the atmosphere which we breathe in making for a great partnership between plants and humans.

However at night, photosynthesis stops when the sun goes down.  During this time when it is dark outside, plants switch things up and absorb oxygen while releasing carbon dioxide.  But a few plants – such as orchids, succulents, and epiphytic bromeliads – continue to absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen.  To keep oxygen levels flowing while you’re sleeping in your bedroom, consider using these plants in your personal space.

·      Plants reduce incidence of illnesses

Up to 10 percent of the moisture in the atmosphere comes from plants.  Plants in the great outdoors use their roots to tap into groundwater for a drink of which then evaporate through the leaves in a process known as transpiration.  This means even plants brought indoors to live can help increase humidity levels within your home, making this especially good for people living in drier areas.  Because plants can up the moisture levels in your home, this can help reduce problem dry skin, colds, sore throats, and dry coughs.  This high humidity level can also be good for reducing the survival and transmission of the flu virus. 

·      Plants boost healing

Plants really can be considered “good medicine” as one study recommends.  Here again is why bringing plants or flowers to a hospital patient can be effective in helping surgery patient recover – they’re inexpensive, noninvasive, acting as an effective complementary medicine.

Other studies have shown additional benefits plants offer for hospitalized patients – just the simple act of viewing a plant can lead to significant improvements in lowering blood pressure, pain, anxiety, fatigue, shorter hospital stays, and higher hospital and room satisfaction when compared to patients who did not have plants in their room. 

·      Plants boost work ethic

Lost your motivation to work?  Buy some houseplants.  We all know the feeling spending time in nature gives us – a sense of vitality, increased energy levels, and feelings of more animation.  By bringing the natural environment indoors this induces a more positive outlook on life making you feel more alive and active.  When we feel more vigor, we tend to put more effort and energy into our work.  Strategic placement of houseplants either in your home or office can be a big boost to getting more done.

·      Plants reduce stress and anxiety

When we are surrounded by natural aesthetic beauty, whether by green houseplants or flowers, it is an excellent way to soothe us by lowering levels of stress and anxiety.  The sight of our plants can lead to more positive energy by reducing perceive stress level keeping you more relaxed, calm and happy.  Plus they add a more optimistic outlook on life by providing pleasing visual stimulation while increasing happiness.

·      Plants improve concentration and memory

Being around plants help people concentrate better in the home and workplace.  Plants are perfect for providing a calming influence lending to increasing a person’s ability to concentrate on the task at hand.  Plants stimulate our senses and mind both visually and tactically which improves our mental cognition and performance. 

·      Plants make us more compassionate leading to better relationships with others

Caring for nature has a tendency to make us more likely to care for others.  People who spend time outdoors exposed to nature and who have indoor plants tend to have increased compassion for the environment in which they live and better relationships with others. When we bring plants indoors, we need to take care of them in order to keep them alive.  By caring for these quiet companions, plants help make us better people by increasing our concern and empathy toward others.