Did you know that spending time in our kitchens can help us manage feelings of stress and anxiety? We all know what it is like to feel stressed and unfortunately, it is a normal part of life. But luckily there are many things we can do to improve our moods and relieve our stress; here we have compiled all of the information about the mental health benefits spending time in your kitchen can afford to help you.
Cooking and Baking
As we all know, food is brilliant for the soul, but new research has revealed that spending time in our kitchens is a great way to de-stress, practice mindfulness, and of course, cook and eat. The kitchen provides us with many mental health benefits and this is no surprise since kitchens are spaces where we can spend time with loved ones, smell delicious smells, and is a place where we tend to gather after a stressful day in the office.
According to this research, which was based on a survey of 2,000 homeowners based in the UK, 60% of people believed that spending time in the kitchen makes them happy. So if you’re looking for a distraction and something fun to do by yourself or with your family, it may be time for you to get your cooking books out and begin making some delicious treats for you and your family!
Many things in our lives are out of our control, so taking the time to bake, measure ingredients, and follow a set recipe can be calming and offer us a sense of routine. In addition, physcologists have echoed how baking and cooking trigger our senses like smell and taste and therefore give us something tangible to make us feel accomplished and consequently less stressed.
Music Makes a Happy Kitchen
In another study about the positive effects of spending time in our kitchens, researchers discovered that listening to music in the kitchen was voted the top well-being activity to do in our kitchen. It even ranked above other activities such as baking, crafting, and socialising!
Music can build an inviting, welcoming environment and has the power to make you feel motivated, so playing music in your kitchen whilst cooking is guaranteed to grant you a delicious meal!
It also provides a great backdrop for evenings when you are entertaining guests in your kitchen. It helps to create the ambience, and lift the mood and overall atmosphere too!
A Clean Kitchen is a Happy Kitchen
It may be hard to believe, but cleaning our kitchens affords us many mental health benefits too. Although we may think that the prospect of cleaning our kitchens gives us stress, more often than not, cleaning is a therapeutic activity that is sure to make us feel accomplished and relieved afterwards.
You’ve heard the saying ‘clean house, clean minds’ and this is certainly true! A clean kitchen helps us stay organised and gives us room to focus and free our minds; it is hard to dedicate our full attention to the day’s tasks when our kitchen is a cluttered mess.
So now you are aware of the ways your kitchen can afford you some mental health benefits, be sure you spend some time treating yourself. It is easy to get caught up in our everyday lives, but it pays to take some time out to focus on ourselves. Whether you bake up a storm in your kitchen or spend quiet time in your kitchen, make sure to soak up all the mental health benefits your kitchen can offer you.