We often think of cleaning our homes and organizing our work spaces as chores. Unwelcome tasks that just add another item to an already full to-do list. And while that is one way to look at it, there is a positive side to every situation; it’s just up to you to move around until you see it.  

The physical actions of cleaning and organizing can be tiresome and can take time. But – that is not always a bad thing! Cleaning and organizing gets tiresome when there is a lot to clean or a lot to organize. This only happens when you let things pile up. More to the point, the effort you’re spending on these tasks is supposed to enable you to live a more balanced life, according to Dr. Eva Selhub, author and M.D.  

With that thought in mind, here are a few gems of health wisdom that show the physical and mental benefits of adopting a clean and organized lifestyle. 

According to recent studies, people with clean homes are healthier on average than people with messy homes. From the demographic studied, the researchers involved found that home cleanliness was even more of a factor in the participants’ physical health and fitness than the safety and walkability of their neighbourhood. We can understand this to be true, given that cleaning a home involves some physical activity. While no substitute for a proper work-out; vacuuming, dusting, sweeping and mopping all require elbow-grease, as well as covering each square foot of your home, which works up a bit of a sweat. Who says you need to go for a walk to get some light cardio in?  

Another study went on to discuss how clutter affects a person’s ability to focus on specific tasks. This study indicated that the area of our brains that deals with visual input (the visual cortex) gets overwhelmed when objects that don’t have anything to do with the task at hand are in view. A clean workspace, with minimal clutter and a simple but effective organization system for loose paper or notes, will be a far more productive workspace than a cluttered one unless you fall into the specific group of people that need ‘white imagery’ (white noise) in the background to allow your eyes to follow something while you’re thinking.  

Finally, a question to our readers. How do you feel when you return to home full of clutter, unfinished projects or long to-do lists? It certainly can’t be a fun or happy feeling. The more of these types of tasks you can cross of your list, the more time you have to do things you want to/enjoy doing. What we’re trying to say is; build that DIY shelf! Sweep all of the stuff on your desk that you haven’t touched in weeks off of it and into a box. Go grocery shopping, get the dry-cleaning done and water your plants. Positive action returns positive reward, and whatever steps you need to take to move toward living clean and organized will be a step in the right direction! As always, Maidstr is happy to help our customers in the Guelph and Greater Toronto Area. If you need your home cleaned, we’re your professional, personable and efficient service for home, condo and house cleaning.