Gardening is excellent exercise for the whole you, body, mind and spirit. Spending time outdoors and being surrounded by greenery has been proven to reduce stress, and depressive symptoms and lead to improved emotional well-being, mental health and behavior and decreased psychological distress. Whether you work on landscaping grass, trees, shrubs and flowers or just plant a few containers on a porch or patio doing your own gardening is a great thing for your health and the health of the planet.
Growing your own food is an ancient practice that has enjoyed a resurgence recently as part of a new desire to live a more sustainable life. Plants naturally contain a chemical long believed to affect overall health. Based on research the phytochemicals in vegetables, fruits and herbs appear to influence all animal wellbeing, including humans. Recent research in California has further shown that plants which are grown organically have a higher level of these phytochemicals. Growing your own allows you to avoid synthetic pesticides and reap the rewards of the highest level of nutrition. Learn how you can get started growing Vegetables for Your Health right now.
Benefits of Gardening
For Your Body
Gardening burns calories and is considered to be moderate to high-intensity exercise. According to the CDC you can burn over 300 calories in just one hour of light gardening and yard work.
Heavier gardening, such as lifting bags of dirt, digging, raking, and hoeing require strength and stretching, working all of the major muscle groups. Strengthening exercise decreases the likelihood of osteoporosis through building muscle and bone density. Gardening also strengthens your immune system because you are out in the sun generating Vitamin D. Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium.
Not only helpful in maintaining a healthy weight, gardening and other moderate level physical activity for 30 to 45 minutes 3 times a week prevents and controls high blood pressure. It has even been included on the recommended list of activities by the National Heart. Lung and Blood Institute.
Vegetable and herb gardening has a myriad of benefits for your health and well-being. Herbs can provide healing properties in recipes or by making your own teas and tinctures, learn more about Herbal Healers. Gardening is a healthy hobby providing time outdoors and, of course, the freshest vegetables for you and your family.
For Your Mind
There has been research suggesting that the physical activity associated with gardening may lower the risk of dementia. Two studies following people in their 60’s and 70’s for more than 15 years found that individuals who regularly gardened had a 40% lower risk of dementia than the non-gardeners.
Gardening is a great stress reliever.
In a study in the Netherlands students were given a stressful task and then were told to either read indoors or garden for 30 minutes. The gardeners reported being in a better mood than the readers. Rutgers University did behavioral research that showed that flowers are a natural moderator of moods and immediately impact happiness. People have cultivated flowers for thousands of years to express the beauty of the world.
For the Spirit
Digging in the dirt gives the feeling of being profoundly connected to the land giving meaning to our lives by focusing on the beauty of nature. The long term benefits of a positive mood make for more intimate connections between us, nature and other individuals. Gardening gets us into “the zone” or the altered state of consciousness one experiences when jogging, practicing yoga or meditating. This transcendent place connects individuals to the best of who they are.
For The Earth
And finally, planting a tree is one of the best things you can do for the planet. Trees are the lungs of the planet. They breathe in carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen. Trees provide habitats for birds and other wildlife and shade for all of us. Trees reduce ozone levels, protect against soil erosion and store rain water, they absorb sound and reduce noise pollution by up to 10%. Any gardening that you do contributes to your habitat and those around you.
So think about starting a vegetable garden, potting some flowers or planting some trees. For your health and the health of the planet.
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