Spring Has Sprung... And So Has Plant Life!

By Dr. Coleen Andruss, Healthy Lifestyles

Have you ever thought about the benefits of the “green life”? Evidence shows that exposure to green space, whether outdoor or indoor, has physical, emotional, environmental, and mental health benefits. Even exposure to photos of plant life and nature can be beneficial.

Plants are an integral part of human well-being, are essential to all of the food that we consume, and are part of every facet of life, providing fiber, medicine, beauty, peace and tranquility, forage, industrial materials, pollution control, climate control, and food for animals and insects.

Plants are used to synthesize hundreds of chemical compounds and pharmacologically-active substances that are used for medicines. Examples include willow tree bark (containing salicylic acid for use in aspirin), foxglove (containing digoxin for use in heart medications) cinchona tree bark (containing quinine for use in malaria medications), poppy (containing opium for use in pain control medication), and aloe vera (used to treat burns, psoriasis, eczema, constipation, mouth ulcers, acne, and other illnesses and conditions). The list of plants used for medicinal benefits is expansive.

Plant life is beneficial for mental and physical health. Consider the following:

• In one study, participants had their heart rate and blood pressure readings monitored after completing two tasks: working indoors on a computer and gardening outdoors. The results indicated that computer-related tasks raised both heart rate and blood pressure while gardening tasks lowered these stress responses.

• In a Japanese study, plant exposure altered EEG recordings and reduced blood pressure, heart rate, and muscle tension testing numbers.

• Studies using brain scans showed that students in a classroom filled with live plants were more attentive and had better concentration.

• Researchers demonstrated that using plant therapy increases feelings of well-being among people with depression, anxiety, and dementia.

• Therapeutic gardens have been used in hospitals for thousands of years. Review studies have revealed that when plant life and natural scenery is visible to patients, pain medication is needed less frequently, postoperative complications are reduced, and hospital stays are shorter.

• Studies looking at invasive dental procedures have shown that when a patient can view natural scenes and hear natural sounds, blood pressure and heart rate are lower.

• Plant life also has an influence on productivity and creativity at work. Studies have demonstrated better performance, higher productivity, and fewer sick days when plants or images of outdoor scenes are visible to employees in the workplace.

Plants aid us in overcoming the deleterious effects of air pollution on our respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Past NASA studies and newer research have concluded that plant scrubbing or phytoremediation (using living plants to clean up soil, air, and water contaminated with pollutants) improves air quality.

Trees remove large quantities of toxins and particulates through their leaves, transmitting pollutants to the soil where microorganisms metabolize or trap them; thus, plants can be helpful in reducing volatile pollutants in industrial areas.

Trees, hedges, and most plants counter climate changes by trapping carbon and emitting oxygen. Did you know that a single maple tree can remove forty-eight pounds of particulates and one hundred pounds of carbon each year as well as nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, and other toxic metals, all of which are emitted from the vehicles we drive? Worldwide, forests offset 25 percent of man-made carbon dioxide.

Plants can reduce the need for airconditioning by providing shade. They also reduce noise, heat, glare, wind, water run- off, erosion, and dust. Additionally, the evaporation of water from leaves reduces the formation of ozone (O3) near the earth’s surface where it can be harmful to eyes and lungs.

Gardening, especially when it involves digging, raking, and mowing, restores dexterity and strength, burns calories naturally, and provides a form of exercise that doesn’t feel like exercise so that it is more enjoyable and sustainable. Your gym is right outside your window! Shared communal gardens increase social interactions, improve mental health, and slow the rate of dementia. Plant life may even lead to employment for some.

So welcome spring and appreciate how our green life is so beneficial to health. When we take care of our resources, they take care of us!

About the Author

Dr. Coleen Andruss practiced as an internist for ten years and has specialized in weight management for twenty-nine years. She and her staff have personally experienced weight management issues and have a compassionate understanding of patients in the Healthy Lifestyles program. Dr. Andruss’s internal medicine background helps her to see underlying medical problems when formulating individual plans that work.