All of us could stand to be a little healthier. For some, it’s a matter of longevity; getting healthy is a way to live longer and with fewer problematic health complications that get in the way of your life.
For some, it’s a matter of life quality; improving health helps you feel better, so the quality of your life is improved. For still others, health has more communal elements; for example, you might try to follow more vigorous health standards because the other people in your family are attempting to take control of their own health.
Whatever your motivation happens to be, there are tons of little ways that you can create a healthier home environment – without spending a fortune to do it.
What Is “Healthy”?
First, it’s important to proactively acknowledge a small problem with tackling a subject like this: “health” means different things to different people. It’s very hard to describe any food, activity, or setting as inherently healthy, since health is a complex and nuanced topic, and people have so many different perspectives on it.
So, for our purposes, we are going to focus on health as it applies to three main areas:
- Hygiene. Living a cleaner, more hygienic life allows you to be healthier, since it reduces the spread of infectious diseases and prevents certain health complications.
- Fitness. Greater physical fitness also allows you to be healthier, since it greatly extends your lifespan and helps you avoid many chronic ailments.
- Mood. Mental health is also a component of health; any changes to your home that improve your mood consistently can, therefore, be considered changes for better health.
Little Ways to Create a Healthier Home Environment
These are some of the most effective “little ways” that you can create a healthier home environment:
- Invest in a bidet. A heated bidet toilet seat could dramatically improve not only your health, but your comfort in the bathroom. These attachments are relatively inexpensive and easy to install comments, so they pose no logistical barrier. They have the potential to get you cleaner than toilet paper, and naturally, they can save you money on toilet paper. On top of that, they have a comfortable heating element that can keep you cozy even in the dead of winter.
- Buy furniture that supports good posture. Next, consider investing in furniture that supports good posture. You don’t need to spend a fortune to get access to the latest ergonomic designs; instead, you just have to do a bit of research and be willing to shop around. Of course, it’s not good to sit around all day, but when you are sitting, you’ll be sitting with a healthy posture.
- Keep healthy snacks on hand. Make sure there are always healthy snacks on hand. If someone in your house feels hungry (or, let’s admit it, bored), they’re immediately going to look for something to eat. If there are readily available healthy snacks, they’ll be much more likely to choose something that’s good for them. For example, you can keep a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter or nuts and legumes on the dining room table.
- Create opportunities to move around. Physical exercise is one of the best ways to stay healthy, so rearrange or redesign your house to create more opportunities to move around. For example, you can designate different rooms for different purposes, so you’re encouraged to walk between them, or you can have one specific area of your house be open enough to facilitate meaningful exercise.
- Use a water filter. Water filters are capable of removing most particulate matter, bacteria, and viruses from your water. If you spring for a whole house model, it might cost you, but you can also take advantage of a smaller water filter and a pitcher if you have a more restricted budget. Once you taste the filtered water, you’ll never go back to the tap.
- Invest in plants. Indoor plants have the potential to support your health in several different ways. Studies show they have the potential to improve your mood. They can make you more productive if you have them in a home office setting. They may also play a role in improving the quality of the air you breathe. All in all, investing in plants is rarely a bad decision.
- Get an air purifier. If you want to improve your air quality further, consider getting an air purifier. Even a small, portable unit can dramatically improve the quality of the air where you need it most.
- Clean regularly. Come into a regular cleaning schedule to keep your home as hygienic as possible. This should include a daily cleaning routine for surface-level cleaning, as well as weekly, deeper cleanings designed to get into nooks and crannies and disinfect surfaces.
- Install and test detection devices. Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors may seem like a trivial investment, but they have the potential to save your life. If yours aren’t up to date or aren’t working, address the problem ASAP. Take a moment to test these alarms to ensure they’re working as intended.
- Establish a happier atmosphere. Mood and mental health matter. That’s why you should take steps to establish a happier internal atmosphere in your home. There are many ways you can do this, such as by hanging more pieces of interesting artwork, displaying meaningful photos or artifacts from your family, or investing in entertainment options like better lighting and sound systems. This is a largely subjective category, so do whatever feels right to you.
It’s difficult, if not impossible, to qualify a specific house as being definitively “healthy” or “unhealthy.” Instead, your house probably exists somewhere on this spectrum, with plenty of potential for improvements in the future.
With this mentality, you’ll understand that every change, even small ones, can have a meaningful impact on the potential of your home to support good health.