By the time you’re done reading this article, you’ll probably want to head straight down to a flower shop to get some for yourself. Not only are flowers beautiful, but they’re also powerful in dealing with illnesses, improving our health, and so much more. This is why having plants, greenery, and particularly flowering plants around is one of the things that makes a particular space easy to live in.
Even throughout history, humans have given great importance to flowers. From giving them the meaning of their own and developing a whole language of flowers to communicate through gifts to using them in medicine and beauty products – recipes and healing methods we use to this day, flowers hold a very central position in human history and our current lives.
Today, so much of our lives are influenced by flowers. We use floral scents in perfumes and scented candles, people travel from all over to enjoy flower shows and enjoy spring festivals. It’s no surprise that flowers can help you achieve your wellness goals – keep reading to find out how.
They Improve Mood
As a thought experiment, go to a flower shop and see how you feel. Chances are, your mood will improve drastically just by seeing all the colors around you.
There’s something about flowers and what they represent that’s known to make people feel happier and at ease, either by having them around or because someone gave them the flowers as a gesture of kindness or love. This is why studies have shown that having flowers and flowering plants inside hospital rooms has sped up patient recovery in hospitals.
No one knows the cause, but we can’t deny the evidence, not to mention our own lived experiences.
Used in Herbal Remedies
You might have all heard of chamomile tea helping people sleep and relax, but that isn’t all flowers do when it comes to remedies for things like skin allergies, stress and anxiety, common colds and allergies, indigestion, and much more.
While chamomile is used for stress relief and relaxation, calendula is used to heal cuts and burns and soothe the pain, jasmine can help in cases of stomach ulcers and aid in digestive issues, and dandelions can help clean the blood and help with blood-related issues like anemia.
A lot of scientists study the way plants are used in nature by both animals and human beings and use the chemicals found in them to model modern-day medicine afterward, and the use of flowers and plants in medicine has never been a small one. This is why incorporating herbal teas and some natural supplements in your diet might be a great idea to help with certain issues, but be careful not to supplement actual care provided by a trained physician with tea!
Improves Home Environment
Our homes are now both living spaces and workspaces, and it can get pretty boring if you don’t have the right environment. The place we spend most of our time in matters, and living in bare walls or a place with no decor can leave you depressed and worried.
This is why you need to make sure that your home is neat, clean, comfortable, and a little decorated. When your space looks good, you feel good, and it can even increase your productivity while working.
You can test this theory by a simple thought experiment – houses with parks nearby and a lot of plants and greenery in the neighborhood cost more than houses in areas devoid of any such amenities, mainly because people tend to be happier the closer they feel to nature.
Skincare and Hair Care Goals
In a previous section, we talked about how flowers are often used in herbal medicine and are known to cure a lot of illnesses. Not only that but flowers are also used in beauty treatments and even modern-day cosmetics.
One of the biggest examples would be rose water, which people often use as part of their skincare routine. At the same time, marigold or calendula flowers are moisturizing and soothing on the skin. A lot of flowers even contain compounds that are known to make your skin look younger and help you avoid wrinkles.
This is why flowers are often used in traditional and non-traditional beauty treatments, and most cultures have herbal skincare practices passed down through generations that include flowers in one way or the other.
Flowers for Skincare and Haircare
Flowers have been used in skincare and haircare products for centuries due to their natural healing properties. Many floral ingredients offer a natural substitute for more traditional components in skincare and beauty products. The natural preservatives in flowers make them effective for skincare and haircare goals. Some of the most popular flowers used in skincare products include roses, chamomile, hibiscus, calendula, geranium, camellia, bamboo, lemon balm, and plumeria.
Chamomile flowers can soothe dry, rough, or sensitive skin, while hibiscus can act as a natural exfoliant for all skin types. Calendula flower petals and extracted oil have been used for centuries to treat blemishes, heal skin, and reduce inflammation. Lotus flower is used in hair products for its grounding scent and anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and humectant properties. Fleurissent Skincare uses six rare flowers known as ‘Fusion Florale 6*™’ harvested from Provence, France, in their natural holistic skincare products.
Helps People Bond
Sometime in the last century, flower giving became a very important part of traditional courtship in the West. In a society where you couldn’t be open about what you wanted to say, people found a way to express affection (or lack thereof) with the help of flowers. It mattered what kind they were, what color they were, and sometimes even how and in which hand they were given.
A lot of time has passed since then, but flowers are still often used to express affection and sometimes even deep feelings of sorrow and even to wish someone luck when saying goodbye. No one needs to mention how popular the red rose is on Valentine’s Day, and the act of giving and receiving flowers shows that you care about someone and are thinking about them. This is why flowers are loved as presents and are widely used in modern-day society.
