It’s true what they say: health and wellness begin at home. The World Health Organization defines the word “health” not just as the absence of sickness or disease, but the state of complete mental, physical, emotional, and social well-being. Now that we’re spending more time in our homes than ever before, we need to make sure that the place we spend the majority of our day in functions in a way that benefits every aspect of our well-being and health. Here are some trendy designs for home, ideas, and tips for building a home that helps promote optimal health and wellness for the people living in it.
Indoor greenery
Multiple studies have already shown the health benefits of having indoor greenery and houseplants. Here are some of them:
- Boosts creativity, productivity, energy levels, and concentration
- Helps to decrease fatigue, stress, and even colds and sore throats
- Enhances indoor air quality by reducingtoxins, producing more oxygen, and increasing humidity
- Adds life to otherwise plain and boring spaces, can allow for privacy, and helps to decrease noise pollution
- Enhances the overall aesthetics of the home
If you live in a place where it’s impossible to have outdoor gardens, then consider building your very own indoor or hanging garden. Even condos for sale can become a haven when peppered with gorgeous houseplants. At some point, you might even be able to grow your own produce.
A focus on proper lighting
Studies have also shown the importance of proper lighting on one’s health. Lighting can make or break the look and feel of a room, and at the same time, can greatly affect the mood and productivity of its inhabitants. We receive about 85% of information through our sense of sight, and without appropriate lighting, our eyes might become strained or fatigued. A badly-lit room can also induce headaches andmomentary blindness.
Consider what tasks you will be doing in every room of the house and how lighting can help or affect you. For example, you most definitely needa lot of lighting in the kitchen because cooking requires concentratedlighting. If you plan on doing a lot of reading and working in the office, use directional and flexible lighting. Make use of dimmers as well, since it can provide an energy-efficient way to change the warmth and atmosphere of your space. And if your home allows, don’t neglect natural light-it’s a great source of vitamin D.
Workspace ergonomics
Ergonomics is simply the art and process of ensuring that everything in your space allows you to move and function comfortably. If you’re working from home, just like the majority of the world’s workforce in 2020, then you need to make sure that your work setup allows for optimal comfort and wellness. Here are some workspace tips to make sure your body and mind are protected:
- Place your screen or monitor at least an arm’s length away.
- Your wrists must be straight, and your hands at below elbow level.
- Adjust your office chair’s height so that your knees are about level with hips.
This may seem unimportant, but an ergonomic workspace can helpprevent back and neck pain, as well as sore wrists and fingers. If your everyday working position isn’t ergonomic, you risk injuring parts of your body in the long run.
Spaces for self-care
In 2020, homeowners need to find ways to turn their homes into an office, a gym, and a school rolled into one. What often gets lost in the conversation is that our homes are, first and foremost, a place for us to rest and relax. In the same way that you want an office and a home gym in your house, you also need to ensure that you have a place to help get your mind off of things.
Are you into gaming? Consider turning one of the rooms or spaces into a game center. If you’re into beauty and skincare, make sure you have the best vanity where you can spend hours creating makeup looks or pampering yourself. Making time for self-care isn’t selfish; taking care of ourselves is a crucial part of caring for others.
Health Begins at Home
The stay-at-home orders shouldn’t feel like an infringement of our rights and freedoms; they’re a way to protect us and the most vulnerable in society from being infected by the virus. If we’re spending the majority of our time in our houses, then we must make sure that it’s a trendy designs for home should allows us to breathe clean air, work smart, and take care of ourselves. If we want to be healthy, then our homes need to be a place that allows that.
