Health Benefits of Gardening

Gardening is good for you. Many nontraditional approaches to gardening are improving the world around us. Hospitals and assisted care facilities use gardening in patient therapy programs. Schools are incorporating gardening programs into youth development classes. Communities are developing urban garden projects to aid the homeless. Wounded warriors are using gardening programs to heal their bodies and minds.

Those of us who live the life of a gardener know intrinsically that it makes us feel good and improves our well-being. I have some theories on why this is and have found sources that substantiate them medically. Gardening activities stimulate the release of brain chemicals that make us feel good.

This makes me feel good

I stumbled across an online article from Permaculture College Australia on "Why Gardening Makes You Happy and Cures Depression" (see link below). The article refers to research that getting our hands dirty literally brings us into contact with soil bacteria that stimulate the release of serotonin in our brains. According to WebMD, it is believed that serotonin deficiency plays a role in depression. While difficult to measure and quantify, increasing serotonin levels can make us feel better. I always wear gloves when I work with wood and wire, but when it comes to planting, the barehanded approach is the only way to go. Getting my hands dirty makes me feel good.

An article in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience on "How to increase serotonin in the human brain without drugs" (see link below) references studies that show that "serotonin may be associated with physical health as well as mood." They suggest that low serotonin levels may "predispose healthy individuals to suboptimal physical as well as mental functioning." In other words, you aren't performing as well as you should mentally and physically if your serotonin levels are low.

How do they recommend increasing serotonin? Bright light. Numerous studies show that exposure to light makes us feel better and helps us avoid depression. The article draws a correlation to our society's increasing depression problems when compared to generations past when we lived with agriculture as a bigger part of our lives. People who work outside in the sun tend to have fewer depression issues than people who are cooped up inside all day. Gardening is an ideal way to take advantage of the sun and its optical benefits. I definitely feel better when gardening in the sun.

Exercise also helps boost serotonin levels. Exercise can improve your mood. The Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience article introduces tryptophan as another chemical that acts as an antidepressant and "increases agreeableness, decreases quarrelsomeness and improves mood." Exercise, particularly exercise to fatigue, is associated with an increase of tryptophan in the blood. Gardening can certainly be a physically demanding activity and after a full day working outside my muscles and bones may ache, but I sure feel good about it.

Hard work but the results are seen in the first photo above

I've written many times about how good I feel when picking the ripe tomato, plump pumpkin, or juicy strawberry. Permaculture College Australia tells of research that they call the "Harvest High". There is a release of dopamine into the brain when we harvest our garden. Dopamine can trigger mild euphoria. In addition to the physical process of gathering our crops, the dopamine release can be triggered by sight or smell. That helps explain why I can't suppress a face-filling smile when I spot the perfect fruit ready for plucking.

How can you not enjoy this?

I've theorized that endorphins play a role in making me feel good when gardening. When you exert yourself your body produces endorphins. They make you feel really good, similar to morphine, and are commonly attributed to the euphoric feeling you get after a good workout or athletic performance; they produce the "runner's high". A WebMD article on "Exercise and Depression" specifically identifies gardening as a moderate exercise that can help depression. The blissful feeling after turning over the last shovel of soil when I stand erect and survey a prepared garden plot may be a quick rush of endorphins.

Then there are the emotional aspects of gardening that can't be easily studied or researched. There are some things about my passion that don't need to be explained medically or scientifically.

Digging in the soil, finding a few grubs, and feeding them to my chickens produces a wide range of brain chemicals at each step of the experience, but all I know is the chickens are as pleased as chickens can be and I like doing it.

Seeing the face of my grandson when he pulls a long, orange carrot from the soil and grins at his accomplishment is all about pleasure. His response might be explained by the dopamine in his body. But mine is more. It's about family, and love, and memories, and the joy of youth.

This makes me happy

When Carrie tells me she loves my blog and shares my gardening ideas and activities with her parents it brings forth feelings of accomplishment, pride, and satisfaction. It feels good to know I'm making a difference, however small, in the happiness of someone else and it makes me want to do more.

The friends I have who are also gardeners are among my dearest. The love of gardening may have brought us together initially but we love each other for who we are. We are much more than gardeners, while gardening makes us better people.

Gardening makes me feel younger than I am. It brightens my day even when the sky is cloudy and a cold wind blows. Gardening helps take the physical pain of aging away by replacing it with a body ache that relishes to be repeated.

Science shows us there is a chemical reason why gardening makes us feel good physically and mentally. Experience shows us that gardening makes us feel good emotionally. With so many issues affecting our lives and so many activities vying for our precious time, it makes sense for gardening to find a place in our schedule. Gardening helps us put everything else in proper perspective.

I garden because I like to. It turns out that my body and brain substantiate the positive aspects every time I do it. When it comes to taking drugs, I'll keep pumping serotonin, tryptophan, dopamine, and endorphines into my body. I'll keep making a difference and keep making memories.

Gardening is good for me... what a great concept.

Links to:

Permaculture College Australia
How to increase serotonin without drugs
Exercise and Depression

 

Gardening is good for you. Many nontraditional approaches to gardening are improving the world around us. Hospitals and assisted care facilities use gardening in patient therapy programs. Schools are incorporating gardening programs into youth development classes. Communities are developing urban garden projects to aid the homeless. Wounded warriors are using gardening programs to heal their bodies and minds.

Those of us who live the life of a gardener know intrinsically that it makes us feel good and improves our well-being. I have some theories on why this is and have found sources that substantiate them medically. Gardening activities stimulate the release of brain chemicals that make us feel good.

This makes me feel good

I stumbled across an online article from Permaculture College Australia on "Why Gardening Makes You Happy and Cures Depression" (see link below). The article refers to research that getting our hands dirty literally brings us into contact with soil bacteria that stimulate the release of serotonin in our brains. According to WebMD, it is believed that serotonin deficiency plays a role in depression. While difficult to measure and quantify, increasing serotonin levels can make us feel better. I always wear gloves when I work with wood and wire, but when it comes to planting, the barehanded approach is the only way to go. Getting my hands dirty makes me feel good.

An article in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience on "How to increase serotonin in the human brain without drugs" (see link below) references studies that show that "serotonin may be associated with physical health as well as mood." They suggest that low serotonin levels may "predispose healthy individuals to suboptimal physical as well as mental functioning." In other words, you aren't performing as well as you should mentally and physically if your serotonin levels are low.

How do they recommend increasing serotonin? Bright light. Numerous studies show that exposure to light makes us feel better and helps us avoid depression. The article draws a correlation to our society's increasing depression problems when compared to generations past when we lived with agriculture as a bigger part of our lives. People who work outside in the sun tend to have fewer depression issues than people who are cooped up inside all day. Gardening is an ideal way to take advantage of the sun and its optical benefits. I definitely feel better when gardening in the sun.

Exercise also helps boost serotonin levels. Exercise can improve your mood. The Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience article introduces tryptophan as another chemical that acts as an antidepressant and "increases agreeableness, decreases quarrelsomeness and improves mood." Exercise, particularly exercise to fatigue, is associated with an increase of tryptophan in the blood. Gardening can certainly be a physically demanding activity and after a full day working outside my muscles and bones may ache, but I sure feel good about it.

Hard work but the results are seen in the first photo above

I've written many times about how good I feel when picking the ripe tomato, plump pumpkin, or juicy strawberry. Permaculture College Australia tells of research that they call the "Harvest High". There is a release of dopamine into the brain when we harvest our garden. Dopamine can trigger mild euphoria. In addition to the physical process of gathering our crops, the dopamine release can be triggered by sight or smell. That helps explain why I can't suppress a face-filling smile when I spot the perfect fruit ready for plucking.

How can you not enjoy this?

I've theorized that endorphins play a role in making me feel good when gardening. When you exert yourself your body produces endorphins. They make you feel really good, similar to morphine, and are commonly attributed to the euphoric feeling you get after a good workout or athletic performance; they produce the "runner's high". A WebMD article on "Exercise and Depression" specifically identifies gardening as a moderate exercise that can help depression. The blissful feeling after turning over the last shovel of soil when I stand erect and survey a prepared garden plot may be a quick rush of endorphins.

Then there are the emotional aspects of gardening that can't be easily studied or researched. There are some things about my passion that don't need to be explained medically or scientifically.

Digging in the soil, finding a few grubs, and feeding them to my chickens produces a wide range of brain chemicals at each step of the experience, but all I know is the chickens are as pleased as chickens can be and I like doing it.

Seeing the face of my grandson when he pulls a long, orange carrot from the soil and grins at his accomplishment is all about pleasure. His response might be explained by the dopamine in his body. But mine is more. It's about family, and love, and memories, and the joy of youth.

This makes me happy

When Carrie tells me she loves my blog and shares my gardening ideas and activities with her parents it brings forth feelings of accomplishment, pride, and satisfaction. It feels good to know I'm making a difference, however small, in the happiness of someone else and it makes me want to do more.

The friends I have who are also gardeners are among my dearest. The love of gardening may have brought us together initially but we love each other for who we are. We are much more than gardeners, while gardening makes us better people.

Gardening makes me feel younger than I am. It brightens my day even when the sky is cloudy and a cold wind blows. Gardening helps take the physical pain of aging away by replacing it with a body ache that relishes to be repeated.

Science shows us there is a chemical reason why gardening makes us feel good physically and mentally. Experience shows us that gardening makes us feel good emotionally. With so many issues affecting our lives and so many activities vying for our precious time, it makes sense for gardening to find a place in our schedule. Gardening helps us put everything else in proper perspective.

I garden because I like to. It turns out that my body and brain substantiate the positive aspects every time I do it. When it comes to taking drugs, I'll keep pumping serotonin, tryptophan, dopamine, and endorphines into my body. I'll keep making a difference and keep making memories.

Gardening is good for me... what a great concept.

Links to:

Permaculture College Australia
How to increase serotonin without drugs
Exercise and Depression

 

Gardening and Cancer

Recently I had the misfortune of being diagnosed with a Basal Cell Carcinoma, a type of skin cancer, and had surgery this week to remove it. I share this not to elicit sympathy, but to highlight a potential consequence of outdoor gardening. Many of us love to garden in the warmth of spring and summer and to soak up the sun's rays just as our plants do. Skin cancer can result.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, Basal Cell Carcinoma is the world's most common form of cancer and almost all of these cancers occur on parts of the body that are exposed to sun. Sun exposure is clearly the culprit. Workers with outdoor occupations and people, particularly older people, who spend leisure time in the sun are especially susceptible. Does that sound like anyone you know?

Those of us who can be classified as "older people" tend to have more time to enjoy leisure activities like gardening. After decades of unprotected exposure to the sun we compound previous skin damage with more damaging exposure. Cancer is seldom on our minds as we dig, plant, and harvest.

As cancers go, Basal Cell Carcinoma isn't too scary; it's not life threatening. It seldom metastasizes, or spreads, to vital organs in the body and is not considered fatal. It is easily treated in its early stages, but left untreated it can damage skin tissue and cause disfigurement. Of course, it should definitely be dealt with when diagnosed.

Anyone with a history of sun exposure can develop Basal Cell Carcinoma. Your risk is higher if you have light-colored skin. Blond or red hair also puts you at risk. Blue and green eyes are another risk factor. In the past, more men than women developed it, but women are catching up fast.

Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer and can be deadly. It is almost always curable if recognized and treated early. If untreated, it can metastasize and be fatal. The same people susceptible to a Basal Cell Carcinoma can be susceptible to Melanoma, but heredity plays an important role in developing Melanoma. If you have a close family member who developed Melanoma, you are more at risk.

People who have developed one Basal Cell Carcinoma are at risk of developing more, even when the first is treated. On the day of my surgery there were six other men in the waiting room for the same procedure as me. They were all older and were all on repeat visits. One man was having surgery for the sixth time.

The treatment for Basal Cell Carcinoma is simple. The doctor removes it. This can be done through surgery, liquid nitrogen, topical medications, and radiation. When it is near the nose or eyes, as in my case, a surgeon will often perform Mohs Micrographic Surgery. My outstanding doctor made this procedure easy and almost comfortable. In the surgery, the visible cancer and a thin layer of skin around it is removed. The tissue is examined immediately under a microscope while the patient waits. If additional tumor is observed during the microscopic examination, another layer of tissue is excised. This process is repeated until all of the cancer is removed. Success rate is often 95 to 99 percent.

Surgical excision and, increasingly, Mohs Micrographic Surgery is the primary treatment for Melanoma.

Recognition is the most important step in identifying that you might have a skin cancer. Knowing your skin and recognizing changes is critical. You need to be aware of  the Five Warning Signs of Basal Cell Carcinoma and the ABCDEs of Melanoma. You can click on either of the links at the bottom of the page for photos of possible cancerous conditions.

You've heard it before, and I'll say it again. Protect yourself from the sun when you're outside. Wear a wide-brimmed hat, wear protective clothing like long-sleeved shirts and gloves, wear UV-blocking sunglasses, and use sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher (higher is better).

While fair-skinned, light-haired, blue-eyed people have many risk factors it is important to know that everyone is at risk for developing skin cancer. If you spend time in the sun, like gardening, you should see your doctor regularly for skin examinations. If you detect a skin abnormality like in the photos linked above, you should see your doctor immediately.

I'll continue to garden because I love it. I don't mean to imply that gardening is worth the risk of skin cancer. Rather, with the proper precautions and awareness, gardening can be done safely by mitigating many of the risk factors for developing a skin cancer.

The way many of us garden can be dangerous even when we're aware of the risk. I'll often head out to the garden to move the hose or pick some vegetables. Because it's a quick trip, precautions aren't taken. Then I see a few weeds that need to be pulled. Then the herbs need to be pinched back. Then it's time to move the water again. Then the wheelbarrow needs to be put away. Then the compost pile needs to be turned. Before I know it, the quick trip turns into a few hours in the sun. Sound familiar?

I exam my skin much more closely now and look for another Basal Cell Carcinoma to appear. I'm also applying a high-SPF sunscreen more regularly and wearing my hat even more than before. Even for the quick trips to the garden I try to remember to apply sunscreen and wear my hat. As it becomes habit, I realize it really isn't that much extra effort but the dividends are huge. Preventing skin cancer is a big deal.

Link to Skin Cancer Foundation
Five Warning Signs of Basil Cell Carcinoma

Recently I had the misfortune of being diagnosed with a Basal Cell Carcinoma, a type of skin cancer, and had surgery this week to remove it. I share this not to elicit sympathy, but to highlight a potential consequence of outdoor gardening. Many of us love to garden in the warmth of spring and summer and to soak up the sun's rays just as our plants do. Skin cancer can result.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, Basal Cell Carcinoma is the world's most common form of cancer and almost all of these cancers occur on parts of the body that are exposed to sun. Sun exposure is clearly the culprit. Workers with outdoor occupations and people, particularly older people, who spend leisure time in the sun are especially susceptible. Does that sound like anyone you know?

Those of us who can be classified as "older people" tend to have more time to enjoy leisure activities like gardening. After decades of unprotected exposure to the sun we compound previous skin damage with more damaging exposure. Cancer is seldom on our minds as we dig, plant, and harvest.

As cancers go, Basal Cell Carcinoma isn't too scary; it's not life threatening. It seldom metastasizes, or spreads, to vital organs in the body and is not considered fatal. It is easily treated in its early stages, but left untreated it can damage skin tissue and cause disfigurement. Of course, it should definitely be dealt with when diagnosed.

Anyone with a history of sun exposure can develop Basal Cell Carcinoma. Your risk is higher if you have light-colored skin. Blond or red hair also puts you at risk. Blue and green eyes are another risk factor. In the past, more men than women developed it, but women are catching up fast.

Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer and can be deadly. It is almost always curable if recognized and treated early. If untreated, it can metastasize and be fatal. The same people susceptible to a Basal Cell Carcinoma can be susceptible to Melanoma, but heredity plays an important role in developing Melanoma. If you have a close family member who developed Melanoma, you are more at risk.

People who have developed one Basal Cell Carcinoma are at risk of developing more, even when the first is treated. On the day of my surgery there were six other men in the waiting room for the same procedure as me. They were all older and were all on repeat visits. One man was having surgery for the sixth time.

The treatment for Basal Cell Carcinoma is simple. The doctor removes it. This can be done through surgery, liquid nitrogen, topical medications, and radiation. When it is near the nose or eyes, as in my case, a surgeon will often perform Mohs Micrographic Surgery. My outstanding doctor made this procedure easy and almost comfortable. In the surgery, the visible cancer and a thin layer of skin around it is removed. The tissue is examined immediately under a microscope while the patient waits. If additional tumor is observed during the microscopic examination, another layer of tissue is excised. This process is repeated until all of the cancer is removed. Success rate is often 95 to 99 percent.

Surgical excision and, increasingly, Mohs Micrographic Surgery is the primary treatment for Melanoma.

Recognition is the most important step in identifying that you might have a skin cancer. Knowing your skin and recognizing changes is critical. You need to be aware of  the Five Warning Signs of Basal Cell Carcinoma and the ABCDEs of Melanoma. You can click on either of the links at the bottom of the page for photos of possible cancerous conditions.

You've heard it before, and I'll say it again. Protect yourself from the sun when you're outside. Wear a wide-brimmed hat, wear protective clothing like long-sleeved shirts and gloves, wear UV-blocking sunglasses, and use sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher (higher is better).

While fair-skinned, light-haired, blue-eyed people have many risk factors it is important to know that everyone is at risk for developing skin cancer. If you spend time in the sun, like gardening, you should see your doctor regularly for skin examinations. If you detect a skin abnormality like in the photos linked above, you should see your doctor immediately.

I'll continue to garden because I love it. I don't mean to imply that gardening is worth the risk of skin cancer. Rather, with the proper precautions and awareness, gardening can be done safely by mitigating many of the risk factors for developing a skin cancer.

The way many of us garden can be dangerous even when we're aware of the risk. I'll often head out to the garden to move the hose or pick some vegetables. Because it's a quick trip, precautions aren't taken. Then I see a few weeds that need to be pulled. Then the herbs need to be pinched back. Then it's time to move the water again. Then the wheelbarrow needs to be put away. Then the compost pile needs to be turned. Before I know it, the quick trip turns into a few hours in the sun. Sound familiar?

I exam my skin much more closely now and look for another Basal Cell Carcinoma to appear. I'm also applying a high-SPF sunscreen more regularly and wearing my hat even more than before. Even for the quick trips to the garden I try to remember to apply sunscreen and wear my hat. As it becomes habit, I realize it really isn't that much extra effort but the dividends are huge. Preventing skin cancer is a big deal.

Link to Skin Cancer Foundation
Five Warning Signs of Basil Cell Carcinoma