• 16 November 2023

Benefits of…gardening

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Gardening isn’t just about making your house look good (although a little curb appeal certainly never hurts). Research suggests that caring for plants can also do wonders for your wellbeing. The physical exercise can contribute to a healthy weight and blood pressure levels, and just interacting with flora can improve your mood and mental health.

Roll up your sleeves and get digging, planting, and weeding. Here’s how tending to your garden will benefit you in the long run:

1. Gardening can lower your blood pressure.

Just 30 minutes of physical activity most days of the week can prevent and control high blood pressure. Gardening is just one way you’ll soon be achieving the recommended 150 minutes of moderately intense activity per week (as prescribed by the UK Chief Medical Officer) for optimal health.

2. Gardening burns calories.

Good news for those who already spend hours planting or digging. As a moderate-intensity activity, gardening can contribute to and help maintain a healthy weight.

3. Spending time outside is good for your bones.

When you’re outdoors and your skin is exposed to the sun, it prompts your body to make vitamin D. This vitamin — also found in fish and fortified foods like milk — helps your body absorb calcium, a mineral essential for bone formation. As we get older, our bones become more brittle and may break more easily so a weight bearing activity like gardening in the great outdoors can help keep bones strong.

4. Growing your own food can help you eat healthier.

Besides the physical exercise you’ll get tending to a garden, a productive vegetable plot can also promote a better diet by supplying fresh, healthy produce.

5. Gardening can relieve stress.

Gardening is positively correlated with a reduction in depression and anxiety symptoms, according to a 2017 report that looked at 22 different case studies.Gardening is not only good for your physical health but supports your mental wellbeing too.

6. Gardening can provide a source of community.

You don’t have to weed alone. People who worked in allotment gardens had significantly better self-esteem, improved mood, and general health compared to those who did not garden, according to a 2016 study. Gardening together can reduce loneliness and improve social interactions.

7. Gardening can make you happier.

The act of growing plants may also help boost your mood. A 2017 study linked gardening with increases in quality of life and reductions in mood disturbance. This may have something to do with how it changes your outlook on life.

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