What are the benefits of gardening?
Life isn’t without its challenges. Perhaps while you’re reading this, you’re dealing with some anxiety and stress. To feel more relaxed, you could try doing some weeding or repotting a plant. To be honest, I have a hunch that it will make you feel better.
Gardening is about more than just sprucing up our surroundings and enhancing them with lovely colors (although some beauty never hurts anyone). Also known as green therapy, spending time in nature, gardening, and taking care of plants can do wonders for your well-being.
According to some studies, simply being in contact with plants can improve your physical and mental health. On top of that, the benefits of gardening also include maintaining a healthy weight and blood pressure because you get your body moving around.
This being said, here are some benefits of gardening and why seniors should consider turning it into a hobby!
1. Gardening strengthens your bones
Your body produces the nutrients it needs when exposed to sunlight, the most important of which is vitamin D. This vitamin—also present in fish and fortified foods such as milk—helps your body absorb calcium, a mineral necessary for building strong, healthy bones.
According to doctors, older adults are at risk for vitamin D deficiency as the skin’s ability to produce this nutrient decreases with age.
As one of the main benefits of gardening, sun exposure is basically a natural way to get vitamin D. Moreover, exposure to sunlight can help prevent bone decalcification. Just make sure you wear sunscreen if you’re about to spend time outdoors for more than a couple of minutes.
2. Gardening lowers your blood pressure
Going on with the benefits of gardening, experts say that this activity is great for seniors because it gets your body moving. Gardening takes a bit of effort, but the rewards are hard to pass up! There’s a lot of digging, planting, watering, weeding, and planting—all of which help strengthen your heart and burn calories without feeling like exercise.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, gardening counts as moderately intense exercise, providing important cardiovascular benefits. Engaging in half an hour of moderate-level physical activity every day helps lower high blood pressure.
One study found that regular gardening can slash the risk of stroke and heart attack by up to 30% for people over 60. We encourage you to get out and do some things in your garden. Your body will thank you!
3. Gardening burns calories
As we continue to share the benefits of gardening, we can’t forget to mention that participating in this type of activity burns lots of calories!
Stretching to pull weeds, lifting planters, bending, pushing a lawn mower, and digging in the dirt can collectively engage every single muscle in your body. In fact, you can burn over 330 calories an hour. For some of us, that could be an entire meal, such as lunch! More involved work, like hauling heavy bags of mulch or chopping wood, can burn even more calories.
What’s more, some studies have shown that the benefits of gardening also include a significant reduction in body mass index (BMI). Those who garden regularly have a lower BMI compared to their non-gardening peers.
However, don’t put too much strain on your body. If you feel any pain or discomfort, remember to take it easy and have a break whenever your body asks for it.
4. Gardening helps reduce stress
Getting in touch with nature can improve your mood and mental health in more ways than you can imagine. Gardening is an excellent hobby because it’s easy and fun to engage in for both young and old.
For seniors, it’s a great activity to keep you motivated and up and out of the house. Being outdoors under the sun in the fresh air can bring about a feeling of tranquility.
Several studies have shown that gardening also reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression. In fact, some hospitals even use activities such as propagating, planting, and flower arranging to help people recover from surgeries, strokes, injuries, and other conditions.
Not only does gardening give people a sense of self-empowerment when they might feel a bit out of sorts or helpless, but it also teaches them to develop a new skill, which can boost their self-esteem.
Of course, gardening as a stress reducer isn’t exclusive to patients. Many people find that this activity (even if it just means watering some plants) helps them relax and feel better.
Read on to discover more benefits of gardening!
5. Gardening makes you eat healthier
We’re going forward with the list of benefits of gardening, and we’ll talk about another great thing this activity comes with: eating healthier.
According to experts, tending a vegetable garden can help improve your health by providing you with a better diet of nutritious, organic, and fresh vegetables. Nutritionists recommend that vegetables and fruits should make up half of your plate.
This helps ensure that your body gets the nutrients it needs, so you can stay healthy and reduce your risk of chronic disease. The bad news is that only 2 in 10 people manage to meet these guidelines, according to recent data.
Gardening provides extra assurance that the produce that you grow is healthier, better-tasting, and fresher than what you buy from the grocery store, as the food comes straight from your garden. On top of that, as a gardener, you can explore different vegetables and try new varieties that you would never have thought to buy.
6. Gardening cultivates a sense of community
The benefits of gardening also include growing a sense of community. You don’t have to propagate flowers or weeds alone, nor should you!
Several studies have shown that people who work together in a community garden have fewer mood disturbances, higher self-esteem, and significantly better overall physical and mental health than people who don’t garden. Not to mention that the benefits of gardening also include engaging in gratifying work that virtually anyone can enjoy.
Community gardens are a way for folks to build friendships, get to know their neighbors and come to look out for one another. These gardens even became a symbol of self-sufficiency and community resilience, embodying the idea of grassroots movements for positive changes.
They are a meeting place for people of all backgrounds and ages, breaking down social barriers and creating a sense of unity.
7. Gardening makes you happier
Last but not least, on the list of benefits of gardening, it has been associated with improved life satisfaction and mood. Shoveling and digging in the dirt really do lift your spirits. Inhaling microbes in the soil can stimulate serotonin production, which can make you feel happier and more relaxed.
Just the simple act of growing plants can help improve your mood. According to experts, gardening correlates with fewer disorders and increases in quality of life. It also helps you change your outlook because it means having faith in the future. The act of growing something alive and something green is a hopeful thing to do.
Don’t have the tools for gardening? This kit from Amazon is exactly what you need!
If you liked our article on the benefits of gardening, you may also want to read 15 Fun Retirement Hobbies to Kick the Golden Years Blues.
