4 Ways Green Living Makes You Healthier

You’re vigilant about avoiding both plastic water bottles and plastic straws when enjoying your favorite beverages. You even have a small container garden growing your favorite veggies on your balcony. All simple yet significant steps in helping improve the environment.

But did you know that coupling those easy eco-friendly habits with other environmentally friendly practices can actually help you live a happier and healthier life? Here are four ways green living boosts your health.

Breathe Easier

By using natural, eco-friendly cleaning products in your home—like vinegar, baking soda, olive oil, and lemon juice—you reduce the amount of caustic chemicals in the air you breathe . Switching up your products from those harsh cleaning agents will not only benefit your pocketbook and your home’s plumbing and natural surfaces, but the quality of the surrounding air will also improve, allowing you to breathe easier.

Power Up with Vitamin D

When it comes to increasing our environmental consciousness, we can all take a lesson from the sun. While our homes might not all have solar panels supplementing our electricity, we can still gain light and rejuvenating power simply by turning off the lights and opening our drapes to soak in the sun’s rays. This extra boost of daily vitamin D has been proven to help fight disease, reduce depression, and even boost weight loss.

Reduce Stress

When it comes to daily stressors, commuting to work and contending with traffic congestion can rank pretty high. It seems natural that finding alternative transportation options for that morning trek to work is a great way to not only reduce stress but also help the environment. Public transit and carpooling both help reduce air pollution and ease the burden of being the driver. Riding a bicycle and walking are even better options for alleviating stress while reducing your carbon footprint. Burning calories and releasing those exercise endorphins are an added bonus.

Improve Your Diet

Because our typical diet is heavy in red meat, almost one-quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions are contributed to by our food system. For example, six ounces of beef emits about 330 grams of carbon, while vegetables emit just 14 grams. So, when looking for ways to reduce your carbon footprint, consider tweaking your diet. If going straight vegetarian is too extreme, try enjoying Meatless Mondays or incorporating more fish into your diet.

Little changes in your daily routine actually can make a big difference in our environment. Those changes become even more valuable when they directly improve your personal health.