Does cleaning your house make you feel better?

We are currently living in difficult times. Most of us would have never thought that during the early months of 2020, a powerful disease would have emerged in Wuhan, China, and made its way over here to the United States and all over the world in a matter of weeks. But here we are trying to survive the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, more people than ever before are starting to recognize house cleaning services as an essential business. What many people do not know is that cleaning is and has been an essential part of life since the dawn of time. Cleaning your home provides so many amazing benefits that are bound to make you feel better and that is exactly what I will be talking about.

To kick things off, one of the benefits of cleaning your home is that it will reduce the chances of your household contracting the coronavirus. One of the ways the virus spreads is via contaminated surfaces. That is why health officials recommend to frequently clean and disinfect your homes. Although this is not the main way people get the virus, it is better to be safe and clean than sorry. When it comes to cleaning, the CDC recommends to first, clean the surface or object with soap and water. Then, disinfect using an EPA-approved disinfectant. They recommend to regularly clean surfaces and objects that are frequently touched by multiple people, such as door handles and light switches. It is important to know the difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting because many people often mix these terms up. Here at Seattle’s Green Cleaning Fairy, we have a great understanding of these terms and would be more than happy to explain them to you. Cleaning is essentially the process of removing dust, dirt, and other visible impurities to make sure your home looks nice and sparkly. Now, sanitizing is when you kill a certain number of germs and bacteria. The keyword there is certain; not all of them. Disinfecting is what we do when we want to kill all of the pathogens that remain on a surface. This is usually carried out by utilizing a certain chemical product. By properly cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting our home on a regular basis while at the same time following the local health guidelines, we are making sure our family and community stay as safe as possible during these tough times, and is that not the best feeling in the world? 

If you feel more comfortable with having your home professionally cleaned, then consider using our services! Our staff strongly adheres to the local government health guidelines when it comes to COVID-19. Not only are our cleaners amazing professionals and very friendly, but they are also very well prepared. Upon arriving at your home, you will notice them wearing adequate personal protective equipment, have the appropriate cleaning and disinfecting products, and be ready to take action!

Additionally, another benefit of cleaning your house is that it positively affects the way you function. Researchers at Princeton University published a report titled “Interactions of Top-Down and Bottom-Up Mechanisms in Human Visual Cortex” and found out that a disorganized environment decreases an individual's focus, performance, and time management. Sabine Kastner, one of the neuroscientists that conducted the study, states "The more objects are in the visual field, the harder the brain has to work to filter them out, causing it to tire over time and reducing its ability to function." In short, people get emotionally and physically exhausted just by looking at a messy area. So what happens when you surround yourself with an organized environment? Well, quite the opposite. You are able to focus better, have peace of mind, and be more productive. Everyone is different though because some people simply do not get mentally bothered when they see clutter. “It depends on what your brain can deal with,” says Kastner. “There is no one size fits all. Our abilities come in such a broad spectrum. There is so much diversity in what our brains can do.” Whatever the case may be, one thing that remains true is that there are only a few things in this world that make us feel as good as having an organized home.

Our environment influences more than just our mentality though. They can influence our physical health. A study conducted by the University of Indiana found that the inside of the subjects' homes had more to do with higher physical activity levels than other elements considered. NiCole Keith, one of the research scientists that managed the study, said "At the end of the day, the interior condition of their house seemed to be the only thing affecting their physical activity”. The results are truly mind-blowing, no one would have expected it. But if you break down the study it makes sense. Keith and her colleagues essentially studied the physical health of a group of 998 African Americans from ages 39-45 who have low physical activity levels. Keith and her partners improved the outside environment the participants lived in like the sidewalks to encourage people to go out for a walk more often but noticed that the state of an individual’s home propels physical activity more than anything else. Well, there you have it! Can’t argue with science. It is clear that maintaining an organized home can literally help you stay in shape. And when you stay in shape, you feel so good.

The human body is a complex yet well-organized machine. It consists of many different, interconnected functioning components that operate together to keep us alive. Maybe the reason why cleanliness and organization make us feel so good is because our bodies are literally made up of the very thing we love. Whatever the case may be, there is no doubt that a clean and organized home makes us feel better about ourselves since it keeps our productivity levels high and it will most likely help us stay in good shape. Try to cement these ideas in your brain so that whenever you don’t feel like cleaning you will think twice before you quit.