Every one of us is aware of the facts that how plants play a role in sustainable living. But in the city, it is surrounded by high building, pollutions and crowds. Think around your working conditions, inside your office. For a comfortable working environment in and around the office, it is highly recommended to have greeneries and be accompanied by the beauty of nature. It will purify the air and it will provide you with a healthy environment.
In a closed chamber, put a number of indoor plants. Thereafter, pump in harmful chemicals like Ammonia, Xylene, Formaldehyde, Trichloroethylene, benzene etc into the same chamber. Let it remain for 24 hours. Within 24 hours, some plants have the capabilities to remove about 90% of the harmful toxins.
You heard it right; 90% of the intoxicants are removed within 24 hours. This is not what I am speaking but this experiment had already been done by NASA in 1989. The plants that are most effective in removing toxins are discussed below.
Let us discuss the benefits of indoor plants. How these plants can transform the living and working standards in office or home?
Absorb the toxins present in the air
One point that everyone of knows is that plants intake carbon dioxide and give out oxygen. That’s a huge advantage because the body feels comfortable in a high content oxygen environment.
Apart from this, indoor plants absorb toxins from the surroundings, be it in your home or office. It sequesters the toxins in roots and cells. Few of the toxins are broken down by the fungi in the soil. Other toxins are stored in the plants.
These toxins can be organic compounds (like benzene, and trichloroethylene), formaldehyde, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, biological pollutants, disinfectants, pesticides etc.
Moreover, plants also help in reducing the smoke level generated by a cigarette or other means.
You must be aware of the fact that the toxins (pollutants) in the air lead to fatigue, headache, allergies. And, over a long time, it can result in serious illnesses like cancer, nervous system disorder and early death.
NASA studied a number of indoor plants to purify the air. Out of all the indoor plants, the 3 plants that have the best surface area to chemical removal ratio are:
- Gerbera Daisy (Gerbera Jamesonii)
- Snake Plant (Sansevieria Laurentii)
- English Evy (Hedera Helix)
Here is a list of few other plants that can remove toxins like formaldehyde, benzene from surroundings:
- Bamboo Palm
- Rubber Plant
- Areca Palm
- Lady Palm
- Dwarf Date Palm
- Peace Lily
- Boston Fern
- Aloe Vera
Filters microbes like bacteria
According to research, the indoor areas that have plants; generally have 50-60% fewer air-born microbes (like bacteria). Few plants consume microbes as their source of nutrients.
Increase Humidity
In the atmosphere, 10% of the humidity is obtained from the plants. So, the same result applies when it’s an indoor plantation. The plants keep the air moist. This moist atmosphere within the office keeps the skin glow and dewy.
Moreover, research from the University of Norway proved that with a number of indoor plants, it helps in reduction a dry cough, dry skin, cold, flu etc.
Act as medicine and healing
Plants act as a medicine in a variety of ways. Indoor plants provide healing property on itself.
A research was done in Kansas State University which proved that indoor plants result in less anxiety, better blood pressure, lesser incidence of pain and faster healing time.
This research was conducted on two hospitals, one contained a large number of good indoor plants while the second didn’t have any indoor plants. The former showed much better results in healing the patients than the later; with the points as discussed above.
Thus, for a healthy atmosphere at the workplace, it’s always good to have a number of indoor plants. Isn’t it a good deal, invest a little on plant and in return build a healthy environment to work in.
Improve your workspace
Every one of us loves nature and to keep ourselves relaxed, we take the support of nature. The natural beauty keeps our mind cool and relaxed.
So, it can be applied to building natural beauty inside the office too. One-third of our lifespan is spent in the office. Extra work pressure may keep us stressed. But what if, there are a number of plants all around the workplace. Indoor plants will look cool as well as keep the mind cool, relaxed and calm. It also helps in building concentration level. Thus, it can help in being more productive.
Moreover, it helps in improving memory, cognition, mental well-being. Research from the University of Michigan came to the conclusion that having indoor plants can increase memory retention by about 20%. That’s a huge enhancement.
Concluding Words:
Plants do nothing harm. But on its positive side, it has wide aspects. In cities, surrounded by building, let’s make the internal atmosphere as natural as possible. Contact a plantation expert, and they will guide to squeeze the most.
