Why indoor plants are good for your health

Indoor plants are good for your health.  This is a fact and one of many good reasons you should be scooting off to your local garden centre to include these in your home styling.

I have a list of reasons why you should introduce these into your home and lots of inspiration and ideas to help you incorporate plants into your life.

My 5 reasons why indoor plants are good for your health

1. Indoor plants reduce carbon dioxide levels.  Plants release oxygen and take in carbon dioxide, in fact the opposite to us and so are our natural indoor companion.
2. They increase humidity and prevent the air from drying out.  If you suffer from lots of colds and infections you may be spending time in a space that doesn't have high enough levels of water in the air.  By grouping together some plants or investing in one large plant, you can easily address this.
3. Indoor plants can reduce the levels of some harmful pollutants.  We live with so many different pollutants around us.  Some are obvious as we can smell them; smoke from indoor fires or cigarettes or strong fumes from printed brochures and documents.  However if you have carpets or rugs that are not natural or that have been treated with a stain resistant substance then these are less obvious.  So many items in our homes and offices are releasing pollutants into the air and a simple indoor plant will help to off-set these.
4. They create a calm environment.  The eye doesn't need to adjust to see the colour green as it sits right in the middle of the colour spectrum.  This is one of the reasons that gardens provide such peace and tranquility for us.  In the same way a group of plants or even one beautiful green indoor plant on your work desk can have the same effect.
5. Indoor plants are the perfect styling element for rooms throughout the home and are just lovely to look at.  Indoor plants are good for your health for the simple reason that they are beautiful and help you to feel relaxed and at home.

Some of my favourite indoor plants

Orchids, Bromeliads and Snake plants are great for bedrooms.  Remember that although all plants release oxygen and take in carbon dioxide during the day, only some do this at night time so you must be careful which ones you choose to introduce into your bedroom.

My favourite of these three is the beautiful Orchid which looks just lovely on a bedside table.

Aloe Vera is a classic indoor plant to use in a Contemporary Bohemian style scheme.

As a member of the succulent family, they are particularly useful at removing the harmful pollutants of formaldehyde and benzene from the air.  Unfortunately these pollutants are quite prevalent in our homes and particularly in an office environment therefore a handy little Aloe Vera gracing your work desk is a great idea.

Succulents are great to look after too as they retain water so they barely need watering and if you happen to cut yourself you can soothe the pain with some of the gel inside its leaves!

Ferns are another classic of the Contemporary Bohemian style and look very effective as hanging plants.

These are the indoor plants that raise the levels of humidity.  While typing this in a hot and steamy Sydney January, I am actually thinking that more humidity is the last thing that I need.  However, by mid winter when I am suffering from a cold it will be a different story!

Related: 4 key elements of Contemporary Bohemian Style

If you are a fan of a large statement plant over a smaller pot plant or group of plants, then you can't go past a stunning palm.  All palms will regulate humidity and will therefore play their role in reducing harmful carbon dioxide.

Large statement palms are a favourite in corporate environments and you can't have a Colonial style scheme without one.  These look particularly good in outdoor rooms too.

Related: British Colonial Style – 7 steps to achieve this look

Some classic trailing ivy in a home office environment is a cheerful addition.

Other factors that can assist with good air quality

There is a lot of information around concerning the plants that are best for your health and heaps of data from a test that NASA performed a long time ago.  Reading through lots of information for this post, there is no doubt that indoor plants are good for your health however the degree to which they can assist with your overall health is governed by many other factors too.

Indoor plants can't do all the work but can be part of an overall plan for better indoor air quality and general health.  I have therefore included some other elements that you should bear in mind:

• Allow good natural air flow and ventilation
• Ensure that mould is kept under control
• Allow plenty of sunshine into your home
• Limit the use of candles, particularly if you don't have natural ventilation
• Consider the cleaning products that you use and review switching to non-toxic alternatives

I love indoor plants because they really do finish a space well.  Whether it is some fresh Eucalyptus in your bathroom, pots of herbs in the kitchen, an Orchid in your bedroom, an aloe vera plant on your work desk or a statement palm in your living room, the beautiful effect of indoor plants is priceless.

I hope that this has inspired you to introduce some greenery into your home and I would really love to hear your experiences with indoor plants.  Which ones have you found to be beneficial?

I have some related posts that will give you some inspiration of how to introduce plants into your home decorating.

Related: How to incorporate the Greenery trend

Related: Styling with Eucalyptus

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