Considering that Americans spend up to 90% of their time indoors, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, you should intentionally consider the state of health of your home. Moving your home to a place that positively impacts your health means more than simply keeping it on a tight spring cleaning schedule. A healthy home is a holistic concept. It incorporates many things, such as colors, air quality, the state of your plumbing, the presence of pests, and the performance of all your home fixtures. Let’s look at how the state of your home impacts your overall well-being and health.
The Basics: Cleanliness
You’ve probably heard that a chaotic outer life is a testament to a chaotic inner life and vice versa. A dirty, messy, or cluttered space leads to anxiety and stress. No one likes to walk into their kitchen to find a mountain of dirty dishes staring back at them. With the trash not taken out for days, dog food spilled on the floor, food rotting in the fridge, and layers of grime on the cook stove. It is pretty overwhelming, to say the least. The more you don’t do kitchen cleaning, the less enthusiastic you’ll feel about it.
Humans are creatures of habit, and purposing to maintain a clean kitchen, primarily because of the repetitive nature of it all, will get you on a roll. Your mind will internalize the necessity and even pleasure of cleaning your kitchen. According to Forbes Health, cleaning can produce feel-good hormones called endorphins, which reduce stress, relieve pain and promote mental, emotional, and physical well-being.
Keep The Kitchen Spotless and Clean
The kitchen is the heart of the home, where hearty family meals are made and kept. It’s where blissful conversations take place. It’s where a lot of life happens. Neglecting your kitchen speaks volumes about the state of your home. It portrays a lack of warmth and homeliness, which means the residents are not well relationally and mentally.
A dirty kitchen also raises the chances of food-borne diseases and bacterial infections. Dirt-attracting pests like cockroaches, rats, and flies also exacerbate these serious health risks. Allowing a pest situation to get out of control will have you dealing with a full-on infestation. You will need to hire pest control services to help you, which can be an expensive affair.
Pests such as rodents ruin your furniture and other property. You’ll have to replace so many things. You don’t want this conglomeration of problems begging for your attention. Your stress levels will go through the roof, leading to possible physical and mental health issues that require hospitalization and long-term management.
Declutter Your Home
Your home might be clean but still cluttered. So, remember to declutter too. A messy house is a magnet for pests and hinders effective cleaning. Consider using roll off containers or organizing systems to help declutter and organize. Regularly go through your belongings, especially those you don’t use often, and discard what you don’t need.
If the items are in great shape, donate them or sell them to charity organizations for cheap or recycling. The idea is to turn your space from a stressful environment to an inviting, healthy, and inspiring home.
Clean Your Home Incrementally
Cleaning doesn’t have to be a tall order. Start small. Not just for the kitchen but for the whole house. Pick your favorite room first. Set some hard deadlines and non-negotiable goals for yourself, then begin. Remember to take it slow. Don’t be unrealistic. Assess the amount of work that needs to be done and your energy levels. Do what you can consistently, and you’ll have results. Use nicely scented products and disinfectants readily available at your local store. Watch cleaning videos and tutorials if you don’t know where to start. To boost your morale even more, use the reward system. After each goal is achieved, reward yourself with something to celebrate your efforts in maintaining the state of your home.
You can, for instance, reward yourself by having your friends over in a presentable, clean, and fresh living room. If you’ve been afraid of having people over because of the mess, hurting your social well-being, this is a great way to restore well-ness in your relationships and confidence. Bet you didn’t think that the state of your home could affect relationships with people who don’t even live with you!
Besides addressing specific cleanliness challenges, several general cleaning habits contribute to a healthy home and well-being. Regularly vacuuming and dusting removes allergens and prevents a dust mite infestation. Pay extra attention to high-traffic areas like the living room, kids’ playroom, and bedrooms, as well as surfaces that are more prone to dust accumulation, such as carpets, curtains, open shelves, hung frames, decor items, and upholstery.
The Less Rudimentary
Keeping an airy, clean home is considered rudimentary work because anyone can do it if they decide to. But that only contributes a bit to a wholesome health-conscious home. Have you considered that the color of your walls affects your mood and feelings of peace? According to Very Well Mind, colors affect your behavior and psychology dramatically. Picasso, the artist, once remarked that colors, like features, follow changes in emotions.
The Right Colors for Your Home
Color psychology and related research have claimed that certain colors are associated with adverse physiological reactions in human beings, such as increased blood pressure, increased metabolism, and eye strain. There is also a distinction between bright colors, dull colors, and neutrals and how they serve our well-being. For instance, the medical field has begun exploring color therapy, using certain colors to complement medical interventions.
According to Very Well Mind, colorology is becoming a hit in alternative treatments. Based on 2020 research dubbed Impact of Chromatherapy on Professional Lives of Intensive Care Unit Nurses, color therapy effectively combats feelings of compassion fatigue and post-traumatic stress. Have dull colors and neutrals in rooms you want to relax in and use bright, lively colors in rooms that need you to feel light and upbeat. Who knew the simple choice of paint color is such a significant aspect of the state of your home and how healthy it is?
The Plumbing
Let’s talk about your plumbing. If you think about it, plumbing is such a key aspect of how liveable your home is. If your sink pipe breaks or leaks, using your kitchen is impossible. Clogged drains are a real breeding ground for nasty bacteria that can corrode your pipes. You’ll have an unpleasant domino effect if you don’t call a plumbing service to fix the initial problems.
Clogged pipes lead to back flashes, pipe corrosion, and leaks, which, in turn, lead to moisture buildup and water damage, and mold growth. Mold growth leads to poor air quality, and water damage leads to wood rot, attracting pests such as termites. Wood rot messes up the structural integrity of your home. See where we’re going with this? In the end, the state of your house will be unhealthy on every front.
In the unfortunate event of water damage, such as flooding or leaks, seek water damage remediation service. Beyond compromising the structural integrity of your home over time, mold spores can begin to spread throughout your home, causing respiratory problems, allergies, and other health issues, especially for people with delicate or already compromised immunity.
If you notice signs of wood rot, such as soft or discolored wood, you need to address the situation promptly by hiring a reputable rot repair company to assess the extent of the damage and provide effective solutions. Afterward, you’ll need to have them do regular inspections and maintenance, just in case. This way, you’ll ensure that the state of your home is healthy.
Indoor Air Quality
Maintaining good indoor air quality is a list-topper in home environment health. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that indoor air can sometimes be two or more times more polluted than outdoor air. A simple yet effective way to clean indoor air is by regularly cleaning or replacing your HVAC filters. This way, there’s minimized circulation of dust and other pollutants. Consider scheduling an AC and heating service professional to keep your HVAC running effectively. Proper ventilation also helps to control humidity levels, reducing the chances of mold and mildew.
You can also buy potted plants and place them around your home. These will improve the state of your home with a constant supply of fresh oxygen and a sufficient carbon monoxide removal system. The Croton, Butterfly Palm, Lucky Bamboo, and Snake Plant are among the most effective air-cleaning plants. These are easy to keep alive as they thrive both indoors and outdoors.
To add indoor live plants to your space, don’t forget to do some mulching. It will help lock in moisture and prevent it from altering the moisture levels in your home and deter any curious pets you have from digging into the soil around the plant and making a huge mess.
More easy ways to keep the air quality of your home in great condition are to avoid smoking inside the house, refrain from cleaning with unnaturally scented products, open your windows to let fresh air and sunshine inside, invest in soy-based candles scented using essential oils instead of artificial perfumes. Here’s an interesting fact; natural wax candles are made from soybeans, a renewable resource that produces 90% less soot than paraffin wax candles. This is a great way of combating indoor pollution and ensuring a healthy state of your home!
Keep The Chimney Clean
Don’t forget to keep your chimney clean to function optimally and safely, avoiding fires and harmful gases released into the home. You can hire chimney cleaning companies to regularly help remove creosote buildup, debris, and other obstructions that can lead to poor ventilation and compromise the state of your home. Schedule chimney inspections and cleanings at least once annually, or as professionals recommend, based on your usage.
Have you ever considered the benefits of adding roof insulation to your home to improve your quality of life and maintain a healthy home environment? Well, roof insulation helps regulate indoor temperatures, improve energy efficiency, reduce heating and cooling costs, prevent moisture build-up, and protect your home against water damage and mold growth. Roof insulation complements the efforts of your HVAC to create a comfortable, airy, healthy, and fresh home atmosphere.
The Zen Zone
Every now and then, you need a place to retreat to and escape from all the noise and clutter. Welcome to the Zen zone. This popular trend involves creating an area in your home that’s free from all manner of distractions. A place where no electronics are allowed, especially phones. People are seemingly always online, lost in a virtual world, consumed by fantasy and entertainment. We agree with the idea of zen zones, and it’s important to find time to get away from them all from time to time.
The zen zone should not have video game consoles, television, computers, Bluetooth speakers, or WiFi connectivity if possible. If your house doesn’t have enough space or rooms to afford a large no-electronics area, you can use the porch, specific areas of your bedroom, or a favorite corner next to a window. Cultivate the habit of sitting there, practicing the art of silence and being present with yourself, not distracted by all the online sideshows. You can use this time to read, journal, reflect, plan, reminisce, process undealt-with emotions, or take a peaceful nap. Having a zen zone improves the state of your home, making it healthier and giving you something to look forward to when you feel overwhelmed by life.
Taking proactive measures to keep your home clean, safe, and healthy helps to keep many mental, emotional, social, and physical health risks at bay. Regular kitchen cleaning, hiring pest control services, addressing plumbing problems promptly, seeking water remediation assistance, and adding indoor plants are just some of the many ways you can proactively enhance the state of your home. Don’t overlook the importance of chimney cleaning, rot repair, and roof insulation. These may not be the obvious components of a healthy and comfortable home environment, but they are important. Ultimately, your home’s health will affect not only your well-being but your entire family as well. Make it a safe, secure, calm, and healthy place to retreat and rejuvenate.