The truth about air-purifying indoor plants

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While many people believe the biggest benefit of having indoor plants is their air-purifying capabilities, research suggests the true benefits are psychological and physiological.

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In 1989, NASA conducted a study on indoor plants, placing them inside two-foot-square chambers that were filled with various gases. The plants were able to reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the chambers, which has long supported the theory that plants can purify the air.

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However, when Drexel University environmental engineer, Michael Waring, and researcher, Bryan Cummings, reviewed 12 previous studies of air-purifying plants in 2019, the pair found our frondy friends simply don't live up to the hype. The study, which was published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, compared the air-purifying performance of plants against that of opening a window or using an air-purifying appliance.

The review revealed that while plants can remove some toxins from the air inside built environments, you would need around 10 plants per square foot to purify the air as quickly and effectively as opening a window or using an air purifier could.

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True benefits of indoor plants

Plant parents needn't despair, though! Several other studies have proved that indoor plants provide other benefits to those who care for them. A study published by the US Journal of Physiological Anthropology in 2015 reported that interacting with indoor plants can reduce psychological and physiological stress by suppressing autonomic nervous system activity in young adults. Meanwhile, research published by the American Society for Horticultural Science in 2005 asserted that people who work in environments filled with indoor plants are typically less anxious.

More recent investigations into indoor plant benefits, conducted by the National Chin-Yi University of Technology and published in 2022, found that merely being in the presence of many indoor plants can improve both physical and mental health. Furthermore, the same study found that the presence of plants in a participant's immediate environment improved the performance of cognitive tasks that required focus, sorting or memory recall. Unbelievably, the study claimed that being in the presence of plants can increase some basic types of pain tolerance. Another study by National Chin-Yi University of Technology published in 2019 reported that 15 minutes spent standing next to a tall plant in any given room can make people feel more peaceful and positive.

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So, should you invest your time and money into indoor plants? It seems that the mental and physical benefits are numerous - not to mention the aesthetic value of greenery! So the answer is: yes!