Indoor plants make you feel better

Whether it be the plants growing out of your aspara hydroponic machine or your favorite cactus plant on the windowsill, the benefits of indoor plants are endless, improving our lives even if we don’t realise it. Think about it. Almost every building we walk into nowadays have plants as decorations, from restaurants to office buildings. Why? We will now explain the myriad benefits of indoor plants and why it is imperative in this day and age to own one(or some!).

With the ever rising levels of pollution in cities nowadays, having that fresh sprig somewhere within your NYC apartment could bring you a lot more than being aesthetic. Studies have shown that indoor plants are able to remove common toxins and indoor pollutants such as benzene and formaldehyde. In fact, one study in particular showed that the bromeliad plants removed as much as 80% of certain organic compounds in the air within a 12 hour period. Small but mighty, you might say. According to Altman, associate director of the Horticultural therapy program at Rutgers, “The air purification ability of plants depends on factors such as size of the plant, size of the indoor space, and amount of toxins in the air, but 6 to 8 medium to large plants throughout a large room should be enough to make a noticeable difference in the air quality”.

In addition, indoor plants have also been the focus of many mental health studies which have elucidated the power of a plant in your living space. In a study where 28 new plants were placed in a rehab centre in Norway, it was found that after a 4-week period, those who had been exposed to the plants experienced a boost in their wellbeing when contrasted with those who had not been in the presence of any greenery.

Finally, another important benefit of owning an indoor plant is improved productivity. While the succulent sitting on your desk might look just like a decoration, it could actually be mentally boosting your brain, making you work harder and faster. In a study conducted by the University of Exeter, employee productivity increased by 15% when compared to productivity in a bare office. Plants and humans are interconnected by nature, and by being in their company humans are likely to be more calm and less stressed, enabling individuals to be more creative and focus on tasks better.