During wintertime, you probably don’t feel 100% happy and energetic. If you have been working from home or stuck in your house trying to stay warm this winter without seeing much sunlight, you may feel down. If this is you, you may want to think about the cleanliness of your home and how it affects your mood. Lately, this has me wondering, does having a clean house make you feel better?
Yes, having a clean house can make you feel better, and there are other benefits to having a clean home. Some studies show that a clean home can affect your mood, physical health, and even your sleep.
Whether it’s picking up your clothes or child’s toys off the floor or seeing the results of a deep clean for your home from a cleaning service. Having a clean home, can have a positive effect on you and lift your spirits.
Now that you know a clean house can change your mood for the better, you may be wondering about the benefits a clean home can have on you.
Does Having a Clean House Make You Happier?
When you think of feeling better, the first emotion you probably think of is feeling happy. According to a study from Clorox, people who like cleaning are 25% happier than those who don’t.
And for those who do enjoy cleaning, for every additional hour of cleaning they did a week, their happiness increased by 53%.
Does a Clean Room Make You Feel Better?
Imagine waking up in a clean bedroom or working in a clean office in your home. Will that make you feel better about yourself?
According to another part of the same study conducted by Clorox, participants were asked to enter two rooms that were the same, but one was dirty and the other very clean. When the participants entered the clean room, they experienced increases in happiness, production, and a significant stress reduction.
Why Am I Happier When My House Is Clean?
Let’s face it, if you work from home every day there are constant distractions. If you’re a parent or even taking care of your parents, there are even more things you have to do each day.
Lots of families also have both parents working, and it’s hard to do a job all day and then take care of the kids in addition to cleaning. So cleaning can drop to the bottom of your daily to-do list.
Then your house may become dirtier and more cluttered. Over time these constant distractions can cause overwhelm, anxiety, depression, and overall stress.
But if you can move cleaning up to the top of the list, get some help, or pay a cleaning service to do the cleaning, you will feel some accomplishment.
When the house is clean, you can relax, have peace of mind, and be happy knowing your home looks great. And for the time being, you can check another thing off your to-do list.
To learn more about how a clean house helps depression, read our article – Does a Clean House Help Depression?
Does Having a Clean House Affect Your Mood?
Well, we know it can make us feel happier, but what else can it do to your mood? According to a study in the journal – Mindfulness, washing dishes while engaged in the act and being mindful had an increased state of mindfulness, a 27% reduction in nervousness, and a 25% enhancement in positive effects like inspiration.
How else does having a clean house make you feel better?
Does Having a Clean House Reduce Stress?
As I mentioned earlier, a clean house reduces stress. The act of cleaning or coming home to a clean house relieves your body and mind of living in a cluttered, dirty environment. It also relieves you of one of the many to-dos on your to-do list.
Cleaning can also reduce stress by saving you time. Have you ever tried looking for something like a piece of mail, keys, or phone charger in your messy room or another cluttered area of your house?
How much time did you waste going through piles of junk looking for whatever it was you needed or worrying about finding it? Having a clean, organized home will help you find what you need when you need it.
Does Having a Clean House Make You Feel More Productive?
Nowadays, with so many people working from home, a clean office area is essential to productivity. Unlike an office building, a home office can accumulate clutter from your personal life, like bills and other paperwork that may mix with your job’s paperwork. This will make it harder for you to find what you want when you need it.
Your office may also accumulate dishes, mugs, and glasses that can spill while working, causing even more mess. Keeping an organized, uncluttered, and clean office can avoid all of this and help you stay focused and productive.
Can a Clean House Improve Mental Health?
Overall, a clean house improves mental health. As was mentioned earlier, a clean home can make you happy, reduce stress, and make you more focused and productive. But it is an ongoing daily battle.
Throughout the week, we bring things into our house, use dishes, eat food, use the bathrooms, and come in and out of the house. These actions will accumulate dirt and clutter.
So, the only way your house will improve your mental health is by staying on top of the clutter and dirt by either cleaning it or hiring someone to clean it.
Can a Clean House Improve Physical Health?
Cleaning can be a physical activity, especially if you go up and down the stairs in your house to clean different rooms or carry laundry, but is it good for your physical health?
It is. According to a study done by Indiana University, people who cleaned their homes themselves lowered their risk for cardiovascular disease.
This was due to the physical activity performed while dusting, cleaning, etc. The study found a correlation between having a clean home and having good health.
Can Clean Houses Help People Sleep Better?
Yes, a clean house can help you sleep better, and there is a survey to back it up. The National Sleep Foundation administered this survey that examined the connection between bedroom surroundings and sleep.
It’s nice to wake up in the morning to a clean room and not worry about tripping over anything on the floor when you get up. And between two-thirds and three-fourths of those surveyed agreed. They also said that a dark, quiet, cool room with fresh air was necessary for a good night’s sleep.
What about clean sheets on your bed? Clean sheets make your bed more comfortable and contribute to a better night’s rest. Three out of four people in the survey said they got a more comfortable night’s sleep when their sheets had a fresh scent.
Don’t forget to make your bed in the morning. Making your bed declutters your bedroom and gives you at least one accomplishment for the day in case nothing else gets accomplished.
According to the sleep survey, 7 out of 10 people make their bed every day or almost every day. Of those who made their bed, 19% reported having a good night’s sleep most days.
Other Benefits of Having a Clean House
Now that you know some mental, emotional, and physical reasons a clean house will make you feel better; how else can a clean house benefit you?
Allergies
If you have allergies a clean house will make you feel better. Cleaning your house or having someone clean your home will remove dust as well and if you have pets will remove dander and pet hair. These are common allergy triggers that can make you sick, and removing them will help you feel better.
Read our article – Can a Dirty House Make You Sick? to learn more about what a dirty house can do to your health.
Entertaining
If you want to have a good time and reduce stress even more, have some friends over for dinner or to entertain them. If you have a clean house, you won’t be embarrassed or worry about your home being dirty if you’ve already cleaned or had it cleaned.
Conclusion
After reading this article, you now know the reasons why having a clean house makes you feel better. Not only can it benefit you mentally but also physically.
Reducing stress, becoming more productive and focused, and getting some exercise and sleep are just some ways you will feel better.
So start cleaning today and start feeling the effects of a clean house, or, if you are busy and want to hire someone to clean, you can do that and still feel better.
If you are curious about hiring a house cleaner and what they will do in your house, you will want to read my post – What Does a House Cleaner Do in Your Home?
Sources:
Study in the journal – Mindfulness: Hanley, A.W., Warner, A.R., Dehili, V.M. et al. Washing Dishes to Wash the Dishes: Brief Instruction in an Informal Mindfulness Practice. Mindfulness 6, 1095–1103 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-014-0360-9
