How Does Gardening Reduce Stress in Older Adults?

Hobbies are often a popular solution for seniors who want to manage their stress levels. For many seniors who are overwhelmed by stress, gardening has proven to be helpful in alleviating those feelings. Here are some of the reasons developing a green thumb has this effect.

Engagement with Nature

For most seniors, stress is caused by environmental factors. Many are worried about their finances or health, while others may be involved in toxic relationships. Whatever the reason for the stress, changing the physical environment and regularly engaging with nature can be an effective way to alleviate it. A 2014 study conducted in the Netherlands found activities performed in nature lowered stress levels much more effectively than those same tasks done indoors.

If your loved one needs help with gardening tasks or other activities, consider hiring a home caregiver. Not every senior has the same care needs, which means they don’t all need the same type of elderly home care. You can rely on Home Care Assistance to provide an individualized care plan to meet your elderly loved one’s unique care needs. Our holistic Balanced Care Method was designed to help seniors focus on healthy lifestyle habits, such as eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly, and maintaining strong social ties, and our Cognitive Therapeutics Method offers mentally stimulating activities that can boost cognitive health and delay the onset of dementia.

Access to Foods that Fight Stress

While some foods have a temporary calming effect, there are actually fruits and vegetables that can provide long-term stress relief. Produce high in folate and folic acid can be particularly effective in helping elderly people remain calm and balanced. Luckily, many of the fruits and vegetables that are rich in these vitamins are ideal additions to a garden. These include leafy greens, broccoli, berries, beets, and cauliflower.

Home caregivers can help seniors prepare nutritious meals with the foods they grow in their gardens. Philadelphia respite care professionals can assist seniors with a wide array of daily tasks, offering family caregivers the chance to focus on other personal responsibilities or take a break to prevent burnout. Whether it’s for a few hours a day or a few days a week, respite care is the perfect solution for family caregivers who are feeling overwhelmed.

Lower Cortisol Levels

The adrenal glands produce an important hormone known as cortisol. In smaller quantities, this hormone gives us energy when we wake up and keeps us alert when working on something important. However, if our bodies produce too much cortisol, we can have feelings of anxiety as our blood pressure shoots up. Recent studies conducted at the University of Illinois found just 30 minutes of gardening a day can drastically reduce cortisol levels.

A Sense of Purpose

There’s a strong connection between psychological health and having a sense of purpose. Seniors who feel like they’re contributing nothing to the world around them have much higher rates of depression, chronic stress, and other emotional disorders. Much like having a pet, tending a garden can give your loved one something to look forward to every day and a sense of control over his or her life.