The Benefits of Houseplants

by Tegan Piper

• Breathing easier

During photosynthesis, plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen, this makes plants and people's natural partners. Adding plants to your space can increase oxygen levels at night. This helps to improve your health in many ways and can even improve your sleep.

• Releasing water

Part of the photosynthesis and respiratory processes, plants release moisture vapour which increases humidity of the air around them. Plants release roughly 97% of the water they take in. By placing several plants together you can increase the humidity of a room, which helps to keep respiratory diseases at bay. Studies at the Agricultural University of Norway have said that using plants in interior spaces decreases the incidence of dry skin, colds, sore throats and dry coughs.

• Purifying air

Plants remove toxins from the air - up to 87% of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) every 24 hours, according to NASA research. VOCs include substances such as formaldehyde (present in cigarettes for example). Modern climate controlled air-tight buildings trap VOCs inside. The NASA research discovered that plants purify that trapped air by pulling contaminants into soil where the root zone microorganisms convert VOCs into food for the plant.

• Improving health

Adding plants to hospital rooms speeds recovery rates of surgical patients and compared to patients in rooms without plants, patients in rooms with plants request less pain medication, have lower heart rates and lower blood pressure, according to researchers at Kansas State University. Furthermore, The Dutch Product Board for Horticulture held a workplace study that found that having plants in an office space decreases fatigue, colds, headaches, coughs, sore throats and flu-like symptoms.

• Sharpening focus

A study at The Royal College of Agriculture in Cirencester, England, found that students demonstrate 70% greater attentiveness when they are taught in rooms that have plants in. In the same study, attendance was also higher for lectures given in classrooms with plants.