New study emphasises housework’s positive effect on mental health

New study emphasises housework’s positive effect on mental health

Health Care Cleaning
October 22, 2019

Most of us will have heard the mantra ‘tidy home, tidy mind’; when your living space is free from clutter and beautifully clean, it can be easier to think straight and be more productive. You might also be aware that regularly taking part in mild to moderate exercise can release endorphins around your body, which are hormones known to boost your mood. Housework has been placed in this category of exercise in the past, and a new study has revealed just how helpful it can be for mental health and wellbeing.

What’s the right amount of housework for a mood boost?

The new research, which was published in The Lancet Psychiatry Journal, was based on the daily activity reports of some 1.2 million participants. They were asked to log how much physical exercise they took part in each day, with everything from organized sports to cleaning the house taken into account. Participants were also required to keep a record of their mental wellbeing before and after their exercise sessions, regardless of how gentle they were.

It was found that doing between 30 minutes and one hour of moderate physical exercise every day was the optimal amount for a wellbeing boost, which broadly fits with the government’s recommendations of doing 150 minutes per week. However, going too far over this could have the opposite effect. Study author Dr. Adam Chekroud of Yale University commented: “Previously, people have believed that the more exercise you do, the better your mental health, but our study suggests that this is not the case.

“Doing exercise more than 23 times a month, or exercising for longer than 90-minute sessions is associated with worse mental health.”

You still need to avoid doing too much exercise

The study’s findings, therefore, suggest that if you play in a football match, for example, and then go home and clean your house from top to bottom, this could be too much exercise, tiring you out and leaving you feeling worse mentally. There’s also a risk of addiction where over-exercising is concerned, as well as both physical and mental exhaustion.

With this in mind, it’s important to not overdo it, and stick to the level of exercise that makes you feel good. So, if it’s walking, running, swimming or playing a sport that you prefer to do to get your physical activity for the day in, make sure someone else is looking after chores such as your cleaning for you. Our team of highly experienced professional cleaners at FastKlean is always here to lend a hand, whether you’re after a brightening spring clean, want to remove stubborn grease from your oven or require some specialist upholstery cleaning.

What type of exercise do you love the most? Do you find yourself feeling better after getting your housework done? Let us know below.

Credits:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-45116607

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/exercising-too-much-worsen-mental-health-study-a8484126.htm