How Washing Dishes and Other Boring Household Chores Can Actually Keep You Healthy

For men, it's the "Honey Do" list. For women, it's the "To Do" list. But it's all the same. Household chores that for many seem boring. But, did you know that some of these household chores can actually improve your health?

5 house chores that have health benefits

1. Mowing the grass: This and other types of yard work are good cardiovascular workouts. A Swedish study showed that people who do their own yard work have a nearly 30 percent lower risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
2. Washing dishes: It can reduce anxiety by 27 percent, according to a recent study by the Florida State University's psychology department. How? It has to do with the calming effect of having your hands soak in warm water using sweet smelling soap.
3. Making up the bed: Most of us have been doing this every morning for years. If you are one of these, you probably have better productivity, a greater sense of well-being, you're better at sticking to a budget, and you get a better night's sleep than others, according to Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit.
4. Clean up clutter: People who live in cluttered homes are 77 percent more likely to be overweight or obese, according to author Peter Walsh, who wrote Cut the Clutter, Drop the Pounds.
5. Grow a vegetable garden: Physical activity such as growing a vegetable garden can lower depression by triggering the release of serotonin. According to Dr. Christopher Lowry, PhD, a professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, this activity works like depression drugs in reducing depression.

Read more at www.rd.com/home/cleaning-organizing/health-benefits-chores/