Gardening is something that has been around for a long time, dating back to ancient civilizations.
Gardening deals with horticulture, which is a branch of agriculture focused on plant cultivation.
Alongside all the practical reasons like growing fruits and vegetables for consumption, and plants for their physical appearance like flowers, gardening can also have a lot of positive benefits associated with it when it comes to your health.
We will look at how gardening can benefit your health by promoting a more active lifestyle and doing wonders for your mental health.
Physical benefits of gardening
Gardening is by no means a physically demanding task, and it’s very easy for most people as it does not require a lot of physical effort from a person.
Despite that, gardening is very impactful on a person’s physical health, with regular gardening having many positive effects.
Light physical exercise
Many of the actions that you might do while gardening can amount to light aerobic exercises.
Digging the soil, pulling and planting plants and seeds, and regular checks and tasks around a garden have their benefits.
Gardening engages a person, and many people might not even notice that they are doing some sort of physical activity.
Vitamin D
A lot of us nowadays have become accustomed to an indoor lifestyle with minimal exposure to the sun.
Vitamin D is an essential vitamin for our body that it produces itself when exposed to direct sunlight.
If your garden or the place where you do your gardening is outdoors and exposed to the sun, then you get the added benefit of soaking in some sunlight.
Mental benefits associated with gardening
Reduces stress and anxiety
Anxiety and stress can have many adverse effects on our daily lives, and at times dealing with them can be quite difficult.
Researchers have found that gardening as an activity or hobby can lead to lower levels of stress and anxiety in people.
Increases happiness
People who garden tend to be happier and less prone to mental illnesses like depression.
It’s good to remember that the plants we deal with while gardening are living things and can be very beautiful at times.
Spending time around plants and taking part in helping them grow and flourish can increase happiness in a lot of people.
Gardening for many people can feel like a meaningful and worthwhile activity.
Helps with diseases linked to memory
Gardening is an activity that can help people who suffer from mental disorders like dementia or Alzheimer’s.
Mental disorders like the ones mentioned before can be tough to deal with and near impossible to cure, but activities such as gardening can lower their effect.
Gardening for elderly people
For older people, especially senior citizens, gardening can be a very useful activity for several different reasons:
Physical exercise
Physical exercise can be useful for people of any age, but older people, sometimes lead a much less physical lifestyle.
Gardening for them can add a good amount of exercise and physical activity that can help them out a lot.
Engages the brain and boosts cognitive function
As mentioned before, gardening helps a lot with mental health and disorders linked to the brain or memory.
As we age, we are more prone to these conditions and memory issues, which makes activities like gardening that much more impactful for the elderly.
Gardening engages the person and requires a lot of planning, decision-making, and problem-solving.
If you are someone with a loved one that suffers from a condition such as dementia, then gardening can be a great way to help them.
Services such as loving home care can help you out a lot with this, and they offer services all around the US.
for example, if you are looking for dementia care Seal beach, then they also offer their services over there.
Social engagement
Gardening at times can be something that brings people together and boosts social engagement.
People who might have lost their friends or family over the years might feel down or in need of some sort of social interaction.
Gardening can provide people with a hobby or activity in which they can bond and interact with other people their age.
Final thoughts
All things considered, gardening is a really beneficial activity or hobby for us.
Along with that, it also benefits our physical and mental health in a big way.
There are several advantages for practically everyone who engages in a light aerobic activity that involves a lot of thought and engagement, especially for older people.
In addition to all of these benefits, gardening can be a lot of fun and encourage social interaction.
