Our ever changing modern urban society means that green spaces that we have access to you are becoming increasingly important for our mental well being and i believe that connecting with horticulture and nature can be an antidote fro the stress and anxieties that we face in life.
There are ways to incorporate nature, gardening and spending time outdoors into your routine to bolster your physical and mental health.
Our day starts in front of the TV or phone and it ends there too. Routines and habits can be easily broken, and we have everything to gain from it.
- Adults spend nearly 4 hours a day which equates to a whopping 50 days every year and apparently we check our smartphone every 12 minutes.
- Teenagers spend seven and half hours per day in front of the screen and under
- Twelves watch TV for two and half hours every single day
When your phone runs out of battery or you have left it at home you feel disconnected from the rest of the world. It’s those habits we need to break.
Spending too long in front of a screen can have bad effects on posture, causing chronic neck, shoulder and back pain.
The blue light coming from the computer and smart phone use can increase sleeping issues by suppressing the sleep promoting hormone melatonin. Looking at screens for long periods of time can lead to strained dry eyes, blurred vision and headaches.
The WHO in Europe says that people spend approximately 90% of their time indoors at home, at school, at work, in cars, trains, restaurants and shops. One in nine has not visited a natural space in the last 12 months outside their own garden and kids on an average spend 16 minutes per day in natural space.
Why Gardening is good for your mental health?
Most of us fancy working out in gyms and indoors. But did you know there are significant health benefits in the garden as well.
- Gardening can help reduce the level of cortisol and relieve stress. Soil contains anti depressant microbes that can help make us happier.
- Gardening helps us by providing vitamin D and boosts serotonin levels.
- Research suggests that regular gardening lowers the risk of cognitive decline.
- Flowers and the great outdoors are known to improve your mood.
Keeps you fit
Fitness experts advise us to take roughly 150 minutes of exercise per week, that much time can be discouraging for many people. But by working in your garden that amount of time is quickly met. Gardening is a great all around exercise which will help you lead a healthy physical and mental life.
Helps ease chronic pain
Gardening and landscaping can act as therapy for people who experience chronic pain, these can be cases of arthritis, tension headaches and back pain. For people with arthritis staying active is necessary to relieve stiffness in joints.
Clears your head
Studies show that moderate exercises done in gardens can reduce stress levels. Aside from staying physically active in completing garden tasks, being close to nature can also help reduce stress, anxiety and even help with depression. Gardening can ease your mind while letting you engage in light physical activities.
Improves Your Diet
If you are looking to add more nutrients to your diet, cultivating an edible can be a great idea. It will encourage to grow more greens and add healthy alternatives to your diet. If you are a parent it can also give you a chance to influence your kids to eat healthy.
All in all gardening can prove to be a win-win hobby for both physical and mental health.