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Nurture Your Nest: Room by Room Wellness

With cooler weather around the corner, our time spent inside our homes will continue to increase with the Fall and Winter months. We spend most of our time at home and work, so it makes sense the surroundings of our home can directly influence our mood and wellness – both physical and mental. Air quality, structure and design, neighbors, and accessibility can affect the impact our homes have on our health. There are many things we can do to ensure our homes support our health and wellness, such as checking the batteries in smoke detectors, clearing up clutter, testing for lead, and creating more time for family.

This September the OSU Live Healthy Live Well team is hosting a four-part webinar series that explores how we can nurture our homes to nurture our mind, body, and soul. Each session will focus on a different area of the home and how to nurture that area to feel your best!promo image for Wednesday wellness webinar series with dates for the 4 webinars, and the image shows a welcome mat that reads "home sweet home"

Week 1: From Sheets to Showers: Wellness in the Bed & Bath

Prioritize rest, mindfulness, and personal care by creating a supportive bedroom and bathroom environment. Learn practical tips to create a more calming, health-focused start and end to each day.

Week 2: Nurture Your Nest: Creating a Kitchen that Cares for You

Explore ways to help ensure your kitchen and pantry are working for you and your lifestyle. Learn tips and strategies to create a space that cares for you and your needs so you can enjoy your food preparation and dining experience more!

Week 3: Wellness for Family Life: Inside and Out

Discover how to transform your family and outdoor areas into a sanctuary of wellness for the whole family by creating healthy, connected spaces. Learn about simple changes and habits that support connection, movement, play, and overall well-being – both inside your home and out.

Week 4: Nurture Your Nest: Managing Your Home Workspace

Focus on ways to create a more functional, supportive home workspace – whether for remote work, studying, or household management. Learn strategies to organize better focus, reduce stress, and support tasks like managing finances, schedules, and important documents with ease.

Sessions are every Wednesday in September from 12:00 to 12:30pm. All sessions are free, but registration is required. Register today at go.osu.edu/lhlwwebinars

 

Written by: Zoie Clay, Extension Educator, Family & Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension, Lawrence County

Reviewed by: Alisha Barton, Extension Educator, Family & Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension, Miami County

A No-Shoes Policy. Is this for you?

In the U.S., it is very common to wear shoes at home, but have you ever considered the benefits of taking them off?

Why Take Off Your Shoes?

Footwear is designed to protect our feet but consider the costs. Shoes travel with us everywhere-through public restrooms, parks, and the outdoors- meaning they can pick up harmful toxins, germs, and chemicals along the way. Studies have shown that our shoes can carry millions of bacteria on them, germs like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Escherichia coli  (E. Coli) and Clostridioides difficile (C.diff).

Shoes can also track in heavy metals like lead, and hazardous chemicals such as fertilizers, insecticides, and pesticides. If you suffer from seasonal allergies, you might even be dragging allergens throughout your home, aggravating your symptoms.

How to Be a No-Shoes Household

If you have made the decision to be a no-shoes household, it might feel awkward asking your guests to comply. Many people are uncomfortable showing their bare feet or socks, and in formal settings, shoes are often part of an outfit. However, if creating a healthy home is your goal, don’t feel afraid to implement a no-shoes policy. Here are a few ways to make your request easier for everyone:

  • Tell Guests in Advance

If possible, inform your guests ahead of time that you have a no-shoes policy. This gives them a chance to adjust their footwear and prepares them for easy removal when they arrive.

  • Put Up a Polite Sign

Consider placing a friendly sign by your door to remind guests of your request to remove their shoes. It is an easy and non-intrusive way to communicate your preference.

  • Offer Washable Slippers

If you want to make your guests, feel more comfortable, offer them a pair of clean, washable slippers to wear during their visit. This can make them feel more at ease while respecting your no-shoes rule.

What if Your Guests Can’t Go Shoe-Free?

In these situations, don’t stress- just take some time after the visit to clean your floors or carpets. For carpets, use a HEPA filter vacuum, if possible. If you don’t have one, a fabric-safe disinfectant spray followed by a regular vacuuming will still help. For hard floors, use a mild disinfectant mixed with warm water, and mop instead of sweeping, as sweeping can stir up particles into the air.

What if you Need to Wear Shoes Indoors?

Consider purchasing a pair of house shoes that you only wear inside. Keep them by the door for easy access when you come home. Also, it is a good idea to clean the soles and sides of your shoes regularly. Doing so can eliminate up to 90% of bacteria picked up outside.

The Benefits of No-Shoes Policy

It may seem like a small change, but it can have a big impact on your family’s health, creating a cleaner, safer environment for everyone.

Written By: Sofia Carter, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, OSU Extension Champaign County

Reviewed By: Shannon Carter, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, OSU Extension Fairfield County

Biophilia: Bringing Nature Home

“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”

Frank Lloyd Wright

sitting in nature

If you were asked to picture a place where you felt most calm and content, what would you say? A beach? Your favorite chair? Outside in a garden? It is amazing to hear people describe their “happy place.” Most of the time they describe something that is outdoors … a warm, sandy beach, being under the stars or reading on the porch. And yet, they do not realize the deep connection that exists between nature and their health. But it does exist…and it is called biophilia.

Biophilia simply means love of life. The word biophilia was first used by Erich Fromm and made popular by Harvard naturalist Edward Wilson. It is defined as the “love of living things and nature, which some people believe humans are born with.” It is theorized that humans have an innate connection to nature which make us feel content. Perhaps this is why I have a collection of seashells and rocks on the windowsills in my home. Or why I always have an herb on my desk at work and enjoy smelling their fragrance. Nature simply makes me feel better and more alive. And I don’t need to read books or conduct research to know this because I feel it inside me and trust its healing power.

More people are becoming aware of this as well, as there have been four decades of scientific studies which document that spending time in nature clearly improves our health and can (among many things), lower blood pressure, decrease anxiety, and increase longevity. But how much time is needed to reap these benefits, you might be asking yourself. There are several schools of thought, but according to one evidenced based study, 120 minutes per week is what is needed to notice the health benefits (about 17 minutes a day or 2 hours a week). The good news is that this time spent outdoors in nature can be as simple as sitting on a park bench or walking around your back yard.

It is easy to incorporate biophilia in your home, work, and in your community. You just need to have a direct contact with nature and live in a way that connects you to outside spaces. For example, at home you can open the blinds and let in more natural sunlight! You can also begin to use natural things such as linens, stones, and driftwood to decorate a home. At work, consider moving your desk, so it is facing an outdoor window that allows you to look outside, see nature and let in fresh air to help you to feel more inspired. And in your community, almost any community space can benefit from a community garden or by simply adding plants to social spaces.

Nature is important for all of us and for many reasons. But today, I hope you will consider spending 17 minutes under a tree! Or at least consider eating your lunch outside because nature matters.

For more information and resources on nature and spending time outdoors, visit the Nature Matters website at go.osu.edu/nature-matters.

Written by: Shari Gallup, Assistant Professor, Family and Consumer Sciences, OSU Extension, Licking County.

Reviewed by: Laura Stanton, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, OSU Extension, Warren County.

Photo Credit: Adobe Stock, 418228306

References:

Cambridge Dictionary. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/biophilia

Colino, Stacey. (2023). Brining Nature inside can improve your health. Here’s how to do it. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/home/2023/06/02/how-to-outdoors-nature-home/

Morris, B. (2020, 02-14). For better health during the pandemic, is two hours outdoors the new 10,000 steps? The Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/for-better-health-during-the-pandemic-is-two-hours-outdoors-the-new-10-000-steps-11613304002

National Initiative for Consumer Horticulture. Plants do that inside where we live.  https://consumerhort.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/PlantsDoThat-Indoors-WhereWeLive.pdf

Sutte, J. (2016). Greater Good Magazine Science Based Insights For a Meaningful Life. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_nature_makes_you_kinder_happier_more_creative

Weir, K. (2020). Nurtured by Nature. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature

White, M.P., Alcock, I., Grellier, J. et al. Spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing. Sci Rep 9, 7730 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44097-3.