According to the latest statistics from This Old House, 53% of U.S. gardeners are older than 40.
So, if you’re in retirement and are looking for a new hobby, look no further than gardening for seniors. It’s an excellent way to use your time to do something meaningful, and science backs up its many mental health benefits.
But how exactly can senior gardening activities lead to mental health improvement?
Join our team here at SummerHouse Vista Shores in New Orleans, LA, as we explore the mental and cognitive benefits of gardening for older adults.
Boost Serotonin Levels
You may have heard some folks use the term “therapeutic gardening,” which is an apt description, as it can lead to higher emotional well-being for seniors.
Gardening and plant care expose individuals to sunshine. As a WebMD article explains, the sun’s light makes the body generate vitamin D, a nutrient that helps with:
- Optimal blood cell, bone, and immune system health
- Absorption and use of specific minerals, such as calcium and phosphorus
- Production of serotonin
The WebMD article also points out that serotonin is a natural chemical that gives you more energy and helps make you calm, focused, and positive. For the same reason, doctors sometimes use natural light as a treatment for seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
Another way gardening can boost seniors’ emotional and mental well-being is by exposing them to a “good” bacterium called Mycobacterium vaccae (M. vaccae). According to a University of Colorado Boulder article, M. vaccae activates the brain cells responsible for producing serotonin.
Less Stress and Anxiety
The serotonin-boosting effects of gardening for seniors can help older gardeners feel more peaceful, less stressed, and less anxious. They must also focus on carefully digging around the soil and handling the plants. Concentrating on what they’re doing can help quiet their minds and calm their negative thoughts and feelings, which can then help them feel better in that moment.
Besides, being in and around nature, including the plants you grow and care for yourself, can yield many mental and emotional health benefits. Mayo Clinic published an article that details the many incredible perks of spending time outdoors in nature, including:
- Helping combat stress and its effects by regulating the sympathetic nervous system
- Potentially helping lower chronic disease risk by reducing stress
- Being a possible effective coping strategy for chronic mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression
- Helping manage negative emotions, including irritability and loneliness
The Mayo Clinic article also mentions how evidence links nature exposure to better cognitive function. So, gardening may make seniors feel better while also helping protect their attention, creativity, memory, and sleep quality.
For those same reasons, our senior living community, SummerHouse Vista Shores in New Orleans, LA, encourages our residents to do gardening. We make it easy by giving them access to an on-site communal garden as part of our community’s many exceptional amenities.
Enhance Self-Esteem
Self-esteem is how much a person values and feels positively about themselves. Personal accomplishments help seniors increase this valuation of one’s self.
When older adults do gardening, they can achieve something remarkable by helping their plants grow big and healthy. Seeing their hard work and patience pay off in the form of healthy plants can boost their sense of pride.
Socialize More
Gardening is one of the best activities for seniors to socialize. It allows them to meet and interact with other older adults who enjoy the hobby. It’s a perfect conversation topic, giving them more reason to go outdoors and stay connected.
According to a U.S. CDC article, maintaining social connectedness is crucial to aging healthily. Research has shown that people with close and supportive relationships tend to:
- Live longer
- Experience less stress
- Exhibit better physical and emotional health
- Have decreased feelings of loneliness
- Enjoy a higher quality of life
The same CDC article recommends gardening as one of the activities and hobbies that seniors can engage in to improve their social connectedness.
Feel Better With Physical Health Improvements
Gardening can help improve several aspects of older adults’ physical health that may positively affect their mental and emotional well-being.
Nutrition is a perfect example. Seniors are more likely to eat nutritious and fresh veggies and fruits because they can feast on the fruits of their gardening labor. Eating more of their personally grown healthy foods can help them get the nutrients their bodies need.
Gardening, which involves hand movements like digging, raking, and weeding, can also boost mobility. Doing all these activities can help loosen tight joints and muscles, so older gardeners may also feel less pain and soreness.
Older adults also engage their core or abdominal muscles by digging, lifting, and bending during gardening. The more of and the longer they do these activities, the stronger their core can get. A strong core is necessary to support the flexibility, strength, and health of joints, muscles, and bones.
How Gardening’s Physical Health Benefits Lead to Better Mental Health
Because gardening can help keep seniors fit and mobile, it can increase physical activity levels. The more active older adults are, the more things they can do to give them a sense of independence. The more independent they feel, the better they can sustain their pride and self-esteem.
Higher levels of physical health also give seniors more freedom to engage in social, recreational, and fitness activities. They’re more likely to participate happily in these events.
On the other hand, older adults with physical health and mobility impairments are more likely to stay cooped up indoors. The longer this continues, the higher their odds of feeling socially isolated and lonely.
Enjoy Gardening for Seniors at SummerHouse Vista Shores
Gardening for seniors can boost serotonin levels, self-esteem, and social connectedness. It can also help lower stress levels and improve mobility, nutrition, and core.
At SummerHouse Vista Shores in New Orleans, LA, we take pride in our communal garden, which our residents enjoy access to and help maintain. So, if you’ve been considering moving to a vibrant senior living community where you (or your older loved one) can enjoy this activity and many other opportunities to socialize, have fun, and be fit, visit us today.
Contact us to schedule your tour of our beautiful community where residents thrive and enjoy the most of their golden years!
