Garden for Health: How Backyard Farming Can Aid a Healthy Lifestyle

Gardening for Health: How Backyard
Farming Helps With Weight Loss

Gardening is widely considered a relaxing and fulfilling pastime. Caring for your plants, like your pets or children, can be therapeutic and benefit your health — maybe even in ways you don’t expect. In a study on the effects of community gardening on diet and physical activity, researchers found that those who gardened ate more fruit and vegetables than those who didn’t, increasing their consumption by about 1.13 servings per day. Similarly, participants who gardened consumed 1.4 grams more fiber a day than their counterparts. At the same time, gardeners became slightly more active as well, increasing their moderate to vigorous physical activity during the study period. Diet and physical activity are essential components of any weight loss journey, and gardening is a great way to pursue both without committing to drastic lifestyle changes. In this article, we’ll look at how gardening and backyard farming helps with
weight loss:

Gardening and Physical Activity

Gardening and farming require a routine in which you must water and physically check your plants — weekly or daily. Depending on what you’re growing, you may even have to dig and re-pot your plants. Due to this, gardening is associated with an uptick in physical activity. In a study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, several gardeners described gardening as physically demanding, keeping many parts of their bodies in motion. Other qualitative
studies have also described gardening as an all-around exercise that works the muscles through various activities. Some gardeners in the study even reported that gardening had become their primary source of physical activity and preferred form of exercise over going to a gym.

Some improvements in physical function brought about by gardening include increased flexibility, reductions in arthritis symptoms, and improvements in chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Other research studies have also found that some gardeners attribute different physical health improvements to gardening—including weight loss, health management while aging, and overall
wellness.

Gardening and Nutrition

Gardening can significantly impact your diet and nutrition as you are more likely to eat the fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes you grow. A study published in the journal sustainability found that 52% of respondents spent less money on fruits and vegetables once they could grow their own. Depending on what you garden, you can make home-cooked recipes such as our creamy tomato soup using ingredients you grow in your garden or backyard farm. Moreover, scientifically-proven weight loss programs emphasize how some foods are more nutritious than others. These foods—which include non-starchy veggies and fruit —add bulk and flavor to meals, serving as a foundation for healthy eating. By choosing and preparing healthier options based on what is available in your garden, you can change your relationship towards food for sustainable, non-restrictive dieting. Growing your pantry supplies can also help you better portion your meals to ensure a nutritious diet supporting weight loss.

Gardening and Mental Health

Of course, we cannot ignore the mental health benefits of gardening, such as stress relief, relaxation, and improved mood. Gardeners attribute these benefits to the calming and peaceful nature of gardening tasks and their gardens. Another study found that gardening can cultivate better mental health through lowered stress, anxiety, and depression in healthy women who attended twice-weekly gardening
classes. Other studies have likewise shown that gardening can help improve the mental health of people with pre-existing medical conditions while boosting mental well-being in healthy people. According to the American Dietetic Association, people tend to over- or under-eat when depressed or under stress. While the researchers in the study could not scientifically pinpoint reasons for this positive correlation between gardening and mental health, improving our mindset can help our weight loss journey by preventing emotional and unhealthy eating habits. From physical exercise to improved mental well-being and a healthier diet — gardening has all the requirements to support good health and weight loss while being a fun outdoor activity you can do alone or with family. Stay tuned to our website for more insights on gardening, backyard farming, and healthy eating ideas.