|
 |
|
Good News: Gardening For Mind and Body
 |
Disclaimer:
Mark Underwood is responsible for this content, which is not edited by the Wilson County News or wilsoncountynews.com. |
September 12, 2012 | 456 views | Post a comment
It’s long been known that gardening is a great way to enjoy the outdoors and connect with nature in a tranquil environment. Just taking a walk in a garden can help improve your mood. This is why gardens are often an integral part of retirement living communities--so older adults can easily interact with the ever-evolving landscape as the seasons change.
Gardens can keep you grounded, quite literally by forcing you to slow down and smell the roses. When you are doing repetitive garden tasks like weeding, digging, pruning, and pushing wheelbarrows around, you also benefit from low impact exercise.
Research has shown that whether you are caring for flower gardens or fruit or vegetable gardens, you may be doing more than keeping your plants healthy and productive. You may be improving your brain health.
It’s been found that gardening has a positive influence on the mind. In studying two gardening groups, the first in their 60s, the second group in their 70s, it was concluded that both groups experienced cognitive benefits from gardening. These studies found that 36 percent of 60-year-olds and 47 percent of 70-year-olds had lower risk for dementia than those who didn’t garden on a regular basis.
Gardening has also been shown to improve your mood and alleviate stress. No matter how big or small your garden may be, the sights, smells, and sounds of being outside simply watching your garden grow, can give you needed relief from stress.
Stress reduction has been studied in the Netherlands by comparing reading indoors with 30 minutes of outdoor gardening. The gardeners reported they felt less stress than the people who took time out to read during the same time frame. The sensory experience of gardening can also help improve depressive symptoms.
Keep in mind that gardening for pleasure is good for downgrading stress, but only if you’re not too invested in the outcome. Gardening is only as stress-free as you make it. If you’re constantly worrying about whether your new plants will thrive or produce the best looking flowers and best produce in the neighborhood, you won’t gain healthy benefits that many people experience when they “play outdoors.”
If you plant a garden, you’ll also likely gain nutritional benefits from the fresh food you’ll glean from your own endeavors. But even if your garden plat is focused on flowers instead of veggies, it’s been shown that people who garden tend to eat healthy.
In many areas of the country, outdoor gardening isn’t a year-round option. Even when you can garden every month of the year, you may not be optimizing the benefits of gardening for better brain health. So what can you do to improve your attention, focus, and clarity of thinking?
Many people, gardeners and non-gardeners alike, have discovered another option. They have discovered better focus, sharper memory, better sleep, and an overall improved day-to-day life. They have discovered Prevagen (www.prevagen.com), a clinically-proven supplement backed by 15 years of research.
Now there is hope for what you may be missing--feeling rested and less stressed no matter what you’re doing. Prevagen is the key to giving you just that and more. While gardening has numerous benefits for the mind and body, when you add the year-round benefits of Prevagen, you may find gardening even more relaxing and enjoyable. |
| |
| « Previous Blog Entry (September 11, 2012) |
| |
| Your Opinions and Comments |
Be the first to comment on this story!
You must be logged in to post comments:
|
| Other Good News About Aging |
Good News: The Better Brain Diet (September 25, 2012)
Good News: Good Friends Make Great Medicine (September 24, 2012)
Good News: Too Much Technology? (September 20, 2012)
Good News: Think Creatively, Think Sideways (September 19, 2012)
Good News: Leave Stress on the Curb! (September 17, 2012)
Good News: Biking for Mind and Body (September 16, 2012)
Good News: rejuvinate — Take a Vacation (September 14, 2012)
Good News: How to Say No to Stress (September 11, 2012)
Good News: Protect Your Good Health as a Caregiver (September 10, 2012)
Good News: Want Better Brain Health- Take A Trip! (September 7, 2012)
Good News: Create Your Own Blue Zone (September 6, 2012)
Good News: Sleep Like a Baby- at Any Age (September 5, 2012)
Good News: The Truth About Anxiety and Stress (September 4, 2012)
|
|
|
|
|
|
