5 Health Reasons to Keep Your Home Clean

I hate cleaning my house. In fact, most of the people I know hate cleaning their houses, so I don’t blame you one bit if you’re in the same boat as we are.  Whether you live alone, with your family, or even pets; keeping up with the mess that inevitably comes, can be a real pain in the butt!  It may not be fun, but it’s one of those important jobs in life that just needs to get done.

Even though cleaning isn’t the most fun way to spend our time, there are very necessary reasons for keeping your home clean.  And if you want to be healthier in life, having a clean home is crucial to those lifestyle changes.  Below, I’ve listed five health reasons to keep your home clean:

1. Prevent Pest Infestations

This one may be a little bit obvious, but that doesn’t make it any less true.  Leftover scraps of food or garbage accumulation can really attract bugs and pests into your home.  Ants will love to take over those cupboards for you and flies and other bugs will have no problem making a home out of garbage areas.  Even damp or wet areas (like your bathroom and shower) can bring in bugs and other icky things into your home.  Using proper cleaning products and having a nice clean home will discourage bugs and pests from getting cozy in your space.

1. Life Will be Less Stressful

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to really appreciate the phrase, “less clutter equals less stress”; I find when my kitchen or living areas are messy and full of paperwork, dishes or just extra clutter, I have a really hard time focusing and relaxing.  My mind is always distracted by clutter, and that’s true for most people! Taking those few minutes a day to tidy up after yourself; keep what you need, and get rid of what you don’t, really helps keep unnecessary clutter at bay, thus freeing your mind of stress and anxiety.  You’ll be able to enjoy your evenings and family so much more with a clear mind.

1. Your Home Will be Safer

That’s right! Having a messy or dirty house promotes sickness and injury.  Especially if you have children, you’re going to want to keep up with the mess they make.  Peanut butter and jellybeans that have been sitting under couch cushions for weeks starts to smell, mold, and bring in all kinds of toxic issues into your home.  Not to mention tripping hazards, stepping on Legos or anything of the sort.  You’re bound to be more nervous in the mess of your house.  Clean up the house, get rid of the risk and live your life with more ease!

1. You’ll Keep Dust and Other Allergens Away

Keeping on top of dusting and general clean up is crucially important to keep allergens away. More and more people these days are struggling with allergies to dust, pet hair and other household allergens.  Especially if you have children or guests that regularly come over; you’ll want to keep on top of that to spare them the headaches (literally) or any other symptom they may suffer from.  It’s also been known that allergies can develop at any point in a person’s life; they don’t necessarily have to start in childhood anymore.  It can be difficult to keep on top of these types of tasks, and if you need help from cleaning companies; don’t be shy to seek it out! It’s better to live in a clean, sanitary home that you hire help for than sitting in your own mess.

1. Improve Your Diet

There are studies that show that people who live a cluttered and messy lifestyle, typically turn to fatty and sugary foods to help alleviate those stresses.  Imagine instead, if your house was always clean, you’d have more time to cook and improve your diet.  Being a healthy eater can sometimes mean a lot more meal prep, scheduling, and forethought, and keeping on top of your cleaning means you’ll have more time to dedicate to your food choices.  Not mention, getting up and cleaning your home is going to get your body moving and blood pumping, which will only do good things for you! There was a study at Cornel University that determined women that spend more time in a chaotic kitchen eat twice as many calories than women who have clean and organized kitchens.

Allowing the mess to grow and grow will only make you feel less motivated to clean it.  Try staying on top of the mess; clean as your work and the job will not seem as daunting.  You’ll improve your health, your waistline, your stress levels and more!