June 29th 2010

Did you know indoor plants greatly reduce staff stress, promoting productivity & performance?

A 3-year research project undertaken by the University of Technology in Sydney (UTS), Australia, into the benefits of potted plants to indoor air quality and the wellbeing of the building’s occupants, has recently concluded that simply having one plant on your desk will do exactly that.

This latest piece of research will be added to the expanding back catalogue of studies over recent years, which prove that plants have a wide range of direct health benefits to humans, when present in their working, leisure and living environments.

This study is the first to use the standard international psychological surveys, which, when used on the 40 respondents, showed that stress reduces productivity and performance and eventually stress-related illness, which has become a widespread health concern in business.  The UTS study shows large stress reductions when plants are incorporated into the workplace and that staff with one or more plants in their offices showed reductions in*:

o    Anxiety: down by 37%
o    Anger:     down by 44%
o    Depression: down by 58%
o    Fatigue: down by 38%
o    Confusion: down by 30%
o    Overall negativity: down by 65%
o    Overall stress: down by 50%

* The no plant (Control) group showed the opposite trend with an increased negativity of between 20-40%

To watch Professor Margaret Burchett being interviewed on the subject, or read more of the final report on this research project, please visit Australian Research.

Now that is report has concluded, future funding is being sought to research CO2 energy savings and effects of different potting media on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) reduction.

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