Today, people are increasingly focused on improving their lives, and outdoor living spaces are currently trending. These spaces serve various daily needs, such as outdoor kitchens, home offices, and garden rooms. What you might not realize is that these spaces can actually boost your health and well-being. Check out this article to learn more about how outdoor living spaces contribute to your health.
Outdoor living space is a great place to relax, enjoy nature, and have fun with family and friends in a cozy and stylish space. But here’s the thing: a study showed that people worldwide spend around 80% of their day indoors, which might explain why there are so many modern health issues. Another study even found that people who have an outdoor living space at home tend to live healthier and longer. Let’s explore how outdoor living spaces positively impact us and how spending time outdoors benefits your mental and physical health.
What Are the Benefits of an Outdoor Living Space?
1. Boost Your Vitamin D Intake
Vitamin D is crucial for our health, and sunlight exposure triggers its production in our bodies. This essential nutrient offers numerous benefits, such as fighting infections, enhancing muscle and bone strength, lowering the risk of mood disorders, and potentially aiding metabolism. With more time spent outdoors in your outdoor living space, you can enjoy the full spectrum of benefits that vitamin D provides.
2. Keep Your Eyes Healthy
Spending more time in an outdoor living space reduces the risk of nearsightedness in children by promoting higher vitamin D levels and stronger eye muscles from active play. Engaging with varying distances of objects, like focusing on nearby flowers and distant views, maintains eye health, especially for frequent screen users. With most people spend their time indoors, artificial lighting strains eyes compared to natural sunlight. Excessive screen time exposes eyes to harmful blue light, contributing to eye strain, retinal damage, and nearsightedness. Outdoor breaks alleviate these issues, potentially preventing nearsightedness progression and relieving eye strain symptoms. An outdoor living space offers valuable opportunities for brief eye-relaxing escapes from indoor screens.
3. Reduce Your Stress Levels
Spending time in nature and fresh air is a great way to improve your mental health and reduce stress. And an outdoor living space gives you the perfect chance to do that. Research shows that being outdoors in nature can lower your blood pressure, relax your muscles, and slow down your heart rate. So, giving yourself and your loved ones an outdoor living space is really like giving them the gift of better health.
4. Help You Sleep Better
Millions struggle with insomnia, a relentless companion that can be fleeting or persistent. Lack of sleep at night is a gateway to a plethora of woes. From weakened immune systems and mood swings to a heightened risk of anxiety and depression, insomnia’s grasp is wide and unforgiving. Not only does it hinder productivity at work and performance in school, but it also increases the likelihood of heart disease and hypertension.
However, there’s a ray of hope. Stepping out into nature and spending more time outdoors has been a proven remedy for many, leading to improved sleep patterns. And when you finally get that blissful rest, those health risks fade into the distance. Regular, restful sleep is a key to feeling your best, both physically and mentally.
5. Lower the Risk of Chronic Disease
Recent scientific inquiries have revealed a fascinating correlation between spending time outdoors and a decreased risk of contracting chronic conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and obesity. Notably, the study emphasized that consistent outdoor exposure, both during workdays and non-workdays, is crucial to harnessing these remarkable health benefits. Therefore, building your own outdoor living space can be a transformative step towards a healthier you. Embrace the outdoors, enjoy its wonders!
6. Enhance Family Relationship
Research shows strong family ties make you healthier and the outdoor living space is great for bringing your family closer. Gather around your outdoor kitchen and collaborate on a delicious meal, savoring the enticing aromas while indulging in quality time with your loved ones.
Elevate your family gatherings by hosting a reading salon, fostering a relaxed and intimate atmosphere for meaningful interactions. Venture into a backyard camping adventure, filled with exploration and excitement, or simply curl up beside the crackling fire pit on a crisp evening, sharing stories and snuggling under cozy blankets. Embrace your outdoor living space and allow it to enhance the bonds of your family, surrounded by the wonders of nature.
7. Elevate Your Entertainment
Socializing with friends is also a way to get happiness and health. Stronger social bonds often lead to better well-being. Inviting friends for get-togethers in your home is a fantastic way to socialize and cherish time with like-minded people. However, indoor parties aren’t always the best option.
An outdoor living space offers endless possibilities for entertainment. From dancing parties to outdoor movie nights to summertime pool parties, you can entertain guests in the fresh air, with ample space to move and mingle. With numerous customization options, you’ll find plenty of ways to keep everyone engaged and enjoying themselves.
