10 Benefits of Having Plants in the House

People often do not realise the many benefits of indoor plants at home and how they go past simply bringing a colourful visual into a room. There are several health and wellbeing benefits that filling your home, or even specific rooms, with plants can bring. 

There are many reasons why indoor plants are good apart from the aesthetic appeal and Urban.com.au has collated the 10 benefits of having plants in the house in case you were on the fence about adding some greenery to your abode. We’re confident you will see that bringing the outside in is something that may call for more of your time and effort.

1. Health benefits of houseplants

As you may know, we rely heavily on oxygen, which we convert into carbon-dioxide. Plants do the opposite by converting carbon-dioxide into oxygen. This handy little agreement that we have with plants means that having indoor plants can improve the oxygen levels and help you breathe better quality air. These facts basically make indoor plants an essential addition to your home or apartment.

At night, photosynthesis rate is low, so plants need to borrow a little oxygen as well. Orchids and succulents, however, produce oxygen at night, so there are extra benefits of having plants in your bedroom that fall into these categories to help obtain higher quality sleep.

2. Air purification

Plants act as natural air purifiers, so the more you have in your house, the cleaner the air you breathe will be. This is one of the best indoor plants benefits as some indoor plants can even remove harmful toxins from the air.

The best plants to achieve this are the spider plant, bamboo palm, gerbera daisy, and dwarf date palm, all of which are also non-toxic to pets. The snake plant, however, is toxic for pets, but also a great air purifier, so best to only opt for this one if you don't have any furry friends running around.

3. Natural humidifiers

Around 95-97% of the water consumed by indoor plants is released into the atmosphere making the plants natural humidifiers. This is a process known as transpiration which occurs when sunlight comes in contact with the leaves, pulling water from them into the air. Harsh dry winters and summers will benefit from healthy indoor plants, especially if you are running the air-conditioning a lot as it causes low humidity. People see the benefits of indoor plants for health reasons to help prevent dry skin, throat, and eyes. An increase in absolute humidity can also help to kill flu viruses.

Cacti and succulents tend to release a lower amount of water, making them ideal for spots that are already quite humid.

4. Health and recovery

Better air quality lessens the chance of common health issues. There is a reduction in colds, coughs, and even anxiety. If the humidity in a room is above 40 percent, the virulence and infectivity of the flu virus and other airborne viruses is significantly reduced. As we mentioned in the previous point, plants can increase humidity levels through transpiration.

Keep in mind that the bigger the plant, the more transpiration occurs, so if you really want to raise the humidity in your home, opt for the larger plants.

It has even been shown that plants assist the healing process thanks to positive physiological responses. Patients in hospitals with plants and flowers were found to have lower ratings of pain and fatigue than those is stark, empty rooms.

5. Ready to use ingredients

There are some indoor plants for health and some that are simply delicious, meaning you can have ready-to-go herbs or medicine in your home. This expands the area of your home to include a mini-supermarket to spice up your meals (literally if you plant herbs and spices).

The aloe vera plant is an excellent example of this as it produces a gel that will help the skin to heal if you suffer a cut or burn. It also makes for a good moisturiser and aftershave.

For the kitchen, Thyme or Curry Leaves are easy to grow indoors and perfect for cooking. They also provide medicinal benefits with Thyme doubling as a great way to heal a sore throat, and Curry Leaves being good for your heart.

6. Fragrance

Synthetic room fresheners are sometimes very harsh or overpowering, a more natural way to fragrance your home is, you guessed it, with indoor plants.

The best options here are plants like Jasmine, Lavender, or the Peace Lilly, all of which release a gentle and beautiful fragrance into the air. This is a great way to have a room freshener that doesn't require any chemicals. These natural smells can help you feel more comfortable and at home in your space.

7. Good looks

No matter what interior design trend is in, indoor plants are always a feature and a great way to add colour or a classy look to any room. Something about bringing an element of the outdoors inside helps you feel more comfortable and better connected to nature.

The best thing about plants is the variety of colours and sizes to choose from, meaning that no matter what type of home you have, or which style you prefer, there will be a plant to suit. You can also get a little creative with the vases or pots which hold the plants along with where they sit. Either mounted on the wall, or in the center of a table, the design options are endless.

8. Improved concentration

Plants have been shown to help with focus, and people are more productive in greener spaces.

A study performed by The Royal College of Agriculture in Cirencester, England showed that lecture theatres with indoor plants receive better attentiveness from attendees. Further to this, a number of studies in Norway tested the effect of desk plants on productivity and found overwhelming figures to suggest that workers that were surrounded by plants did much better than those who were not.

Office plants are known as a simple, cost-effective way to improve morale. The reason why the plants helped comes down to “attention restoration,” which is the relief of mental fatigue by breaking direct attention. The proximity of nature provides a simple form of engagement, which has a micro-restorative impact on people in the workplace.

9. Better quality sleep

There are specific benefits of having plants in your bedroom, especially if you experience restlessness when trying to sleep.

A Lavender or a Jasmine plant helps people to have a deeper sleep as they have a calming effect which reduces stress or anxiety. A Valerian plant is another great option to help you sleep, and it will look great while doing it. The Valerian has small pink and white flowers that emit a sweet scent from the plant that has been used to help cure insomnia. 

Inhaling the scent can induce and improve the quality of sleep with many people adding the petals of the plant to a bath. Keep in mind however, the Valerian requires a fair bit of sunlight, so it's best if you keep it by a window.

Indoor plants good for health

As you can see, it's all pros when it comes to filling your house or apartment with indoor plants. With more people downsizing to smaller homes, indoor plants are a great way to provide comfort and style while also helping you feel connected to the outside. 

The visual, mental, and physical health benefits that indoor plants can provide make them a valuable asset to any home. The only thing you need to worry about and the part that people have the most trouble with is keeping the plants alive and healthy. Manage to master this, however, and the plants will keep you healthy in return. 

10. Lessens background noise

If you live in the city, the background noise can sometimes reach significant volume levels. Apartment buildings, in particular, are louder as the sound waves refract off the hard surfaces and indoor plants can help to absorb these, reducing the noise levels.

Indoor plants with broad leaves or shrubs should be considered if you are looking at some of the many new apartment developments popping up at the moment. If you are looking to make one your own, the inclusion of some indoor plants will help make things a little bit quieter and more comfortable.