Homes represent a lot of things for different people. Houses are the places where we gather with families and friends. Homes are where we get together with loved one’s to enjoy holidays and major life events, and they’re the places where we get a chance to take care of elderly parents in the later years of their lives. Houses are places where many of us will spend a good portion of our days.
At the base level, homes are places that provide safety, and security by providing families with a place to live. Many people are still seeking to live in homes in the United States, as shown with recent statistics. In 2019 alone 5.34 million existing homes were sold. During that same year, 682,000 newly constructed homes were sold according to the United States Census Bureau. Though some people see a home as just being the place where you live, your home can have an effect on both your mental and physical health. Below are some connections between your home environment and your health.
Natural Light
The natural light of a home environment can have a big effect on a person’s mental state. Natural light can help a person to feel better and have a better outlook on life as a whole. There are many studies that show that both natural and artificial bright light can help a person deal with such mental health disorders as depression, agitation, sleep, circadian rest-activity, and seasonal affective disorder. This is especially the case during the morning hours, as people are soaking in the morning sunlight. In case you receive individual therapy from or therapist or an organization of therapists, such as Therapy Group of NYC, it’s best to keep in mind how your living environment might have an effect on your mental health.
Make it your goal to bring in as much natural sunlight into your home as possible. Try to find those options that can help to brighten up your dreary home. Locate local window installation services in your neighborhood, as they can help to add more windows to your homes for the sake of helping to improve your mental health. When you have more windows in your home your mental state can make a marked improvement. You’ll experience more productivity, decreased depression, and improved sleep. Maximizing natural light in your home is one way to ensure your home environment is a healthy one.
Air Quality
Many people sometimes have the experience of entering a new home and finding themselves going through a fit of coughing. They find it difficult to get through sentences without breaking the conversation to cough. In some of these cases, this is an example of these people experiencing bad air quality. Let’s say, for instance, you do a great job of keeping your home clear of cigarette smoke. If smokers visit your home, they have to go outside to light up. Now, let’s say you decide to visit a family member’s household where this rule isn’t enforced.
The cigarette smoke in the home of your family member is an example of how the air quality of a home’s environment can have an effect on a person’s health. Home air quality which is poor can affect a variety of the body’s functions. It can contribute to symptoms ranging from eye, nose, and throat irritation, to chronic conditions. Further pollution sources in the home environment like wood smoke, natural gas combustion, mildew, mold, and cigarette smoking can release harmful gases and particles into the home environment.
Ways to Improve your home’s air quality include keeping your home clean. This can include doing basic chores like vacuuming, regularly cleaning bedding or drapes, cleaning clutter, and making sure appliances that collect dust like dryer vents are regularly cleaned. It’s best to hire professionals to take on the more difficult tasks like dryer vent cleaning, so maybe reach out to local professionals like Boise appliance repairs to ensure your dryer vent is properly cleaned and other appliances are up to par.
Water Quality
One essential element of your home is water. Water provides us with nourishment in addition to giving us a way to keep ourselves and our homes clean. With water being so important, it’s best to be aware of how this element can potentially be harmful to us. Our house water supply can include contaminants that can sometimes be harmful to your health.
For example, pesticides in water might lead to reproductive problems, and nitrates in water have been known to cause methemoglobinemia or “blue baby syndrome.” Many of the contaminants which people come across in their home’s water supply might include naturally occurring chemicals and minerals (e.g., arsenic, radon, uranium), local land-use practices (e.g., fertilizers, nitrates, pesticides, concentrated animal feeding operations), manufacturing processes, sewer overflow, and malfunctioning wastewater treatment systems (e.g., septic systems).
These chemicals can even affect your bathtub, creating bathtub stains, and maybe even by creating leaks in the bathtub itself. When this occurs it’s a good idea to look at replacement tubs so your bathtub won’t experience any more wear and tear. Ways that you can improve the quality of the water that runs through your home’s sinks and bathtubs include flushing (running cold water taps for 2 minutes), purchasing water filters, improving your household plumbing, and purchasing water heaters. By improving your home’s water quality, you are helping to improve your home’s environment.
Home Clutter
Home clutter can be a nuisance on some levels, and a cause for concern on another level. The official definition of clutter is “a collection of things lying about in an untidy mass.” This might include mounds of newspapers that you haven’t recycled yet. This can also include a stack of books that you have yet to take to your local library to donate. It might even include those old appliances that are stacking up in the garage that you said you were going to have fixed one of these days.
The clutter which is found in any part of your home environment can have an effect on your mental health. In some cases, if collecting clutter gets to the mental illness level, you might need to seek out therapy options like cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, or a support group or therapy group. Having such messes can equal stress, makes it difficult to focus, can cause embarrassment for you, and can affect your anxiety levels. Some ways to deal with clutter are to throw the items away, recycle items, donate items, or sell these items. When you deal with the environmental hazard of clutter then your mental health will be vastly improved.
