Many of us love to have plants within our home. They can substantially elevate the look of a room and make it appear far more inviting. This has led to a surge in companies selling a wide range of plants that can be easily ordered online. But, it isn’t just about improving the look of our homes that entices us to buy live plants to feature within our home. Plants can also have an impact on our health. In this post, we look at the Health Benefits of Having Plants Indoors. This will show you why you want to have plants within your home. We will also dispel myths that are born from incorrect disclosure of data by some companies, or misunderstanding of scientific research.

Health Benefits of Having Plants Indoors

Having plants within the home is not just aesthetically pleasing, it also has physical and physiologically benefits. As we spend a large percentage of time in our homes, it makes sense to surround ourselves with plants and bring nature inside as much as possible.

Here we will take a look at reasons why you need to have plants within your home.

Improve Mood

Our mental health is influenced greatly by our surroundings. Plants can greatly influence mood. In fact, you don’t even need a large number, just one will suffice, but it is lovely to have a range of different plants within your home. They can look so pretty and make a room look so much more appealing. In turn, this helps create a positive space you will enjoy using. This will also mean the user will feel happier when using the room and therefore feel more relaxed too. Studies have demonstrated that when we spend time around plant it can soothe, reduce stress, anxiety and give our mood a boost.

Have a Calming Effect

In addition, plants in the home can have a calming effect. They have been shown in studies to reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol which in turn reduces stress levels, and by doing so can reduce blood pressure too. When looking after our plants (watering, pruning etc), we allow our minds to relax. It’s been shown that gardeners and by association those that tend to plants within the home are more relaxed and much happier. It gives us a feeling of accomplishment, seeing the plants thrive, grow, flower etc. They are a great way to help us connect with nature especially if we don’t go out much.

Increase Productivity

Whether you are doing housework, cooking, or even if you work from home, having live plants in your immediate surroundings, on windowsills, a desk, or simply scattered around rooms, can have a marked impact on your productivity. A study has show that those with plants within their homes can find that their productivity is increased by up to 15%. They can also increase creativity, focus and concentration. It’s been shown that a persons attentiveness can be increased by 70% when plants are present within a room.

Boost Immunity

Whether you are one of those unfortunate individuals that seem to catch everything, or simply get ill once in a while, you might find that having plants in your home could prove helpful.

Increased Humidity

Plants within the home can help to increase humidity within your home. This is especially helpful over winter months where indoor heating has a drying effect on our bodies internally and externally. The extra moisture in the air thanks to plants within our homes helps increase moisture levels in our lungs. This allows gasses to dissolve and then pass through the cell membranes. It also helps reduce the risk of infection and disease. Research has shown that an indoor humidity level of between 40-60%RH can reduce the risk of airborne flu infections by reducing the period of time airborne flu is infectious.

Positive Effects of Microbial Exposure

When we garden, we are exposed to bacteria. This is true of both indoor and outdoor gardening. Studies into the positive effects of indoor gardening (plants within the home) have proven it to be greatly beneficial. After a month of indoor gardening, a study had shown an increase in the diversity of bacteria on the skin. This will have invertedly stimulated the body’s defence system as the individuals in the study had higher levels of anti-inflammatory molecules in their blood. These molecules are key in helping to kill any microorganisms that make it to the blood stream, helping to reduce the risk of illness. Therefore, indoor gardening ultimately helps enhances the body’s immune modulation, and as a result lowers the risk of immune-mediated diseases.

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Reduce Pain

Would you believe that having plants within view can reduce pain? Well, apparently they can. Research into this was conducted on patients that were recovering from surgery. Plants and flowers were placed in some rooms. Individuals that had plants in their room after their operation reported less post-operative pain, less anxiety and fatigue, as well as lower systolic blood pressure.

Is it True, Plants Can Purify the Air in Your Home?

Yes and no. The reason for this although some houseplants (full foliage plants) can clean the air (the same can be said for the microorganisms in the soil the plants are in are in), when in our home it doesn’t really apply as the air is constantly changing. New air comes in when doors or windows are opened. Air comes in through seals around windows and doors that are not air tight, etc.

The research into the feasibility of plants improving air quality was conducted in sealed chambers which our homes are certainly not. So, it is more than plausible to say that the results are not applicable to home conditions as these are constantly changing.

Therefore, for anyone that is till in doubt, from a scientific perspective, houseplants within the home cannot purify the air effectively enough to make a real difference.

Summary

I hope you have enjoyed reading my post; Health Benefits of Having Plants Indoors. As you can see there are many important benefits to having plants within our homes. They don’t just look great they also have important health benefits from which we can all benefit. So why not order some plants for your home if you don’t already have any. And, if you do, another 1 or 2 plants will make your rooms look even better.

Do you have live plants in your home? If not, having read this, is it something you might now consider?

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