When you picture a healthy kitchen, I bet you immediately think of fresh vegetables, clear water, and freshly baked goods. However, a healthy kitchen is not just about food. The overall appearance of your kitchen, ease of use, and accessibility of foodstuff also plays a huge part in the ‘health’ of your kitchen – and even your own well-being!
A kitchen’s main purpose is a function, but an aesthetically pleasing space will also calm the mind and encourage a good mood and positive attitude, resulting in healthier eating practices. Here are four ways to achieve that.
1. Harness the Power of Nature and Colour
Your kitchen needs to give off a clean, fresh, open vibe that will create a positive environment and put you in the right frame of mind for healthy eating, meal preparation, and planning. Where possible, allow as much natural sunlight into the space as you can. The sun is a natural mood-booster, and exposure to it is known to create a cheerful atmosphere by immediately improving our moods with the increased production of serotonin – one of our body’s feel-good hormones.
While the sun can’t be replicated, you can achieve similar results with artificial inclusions if exposure to natural sunlight isn’t possible. Try adding cool-white or daylight-coloured light globes and yellow hues to the space. The bright light effect and yellow tones will reference the sun, resulting in an uplifting and vibrant atmosphere. For optimal results, try adding white to add contrast or reflect yellow tones when trying to imitate natural light; this will make the yellow really stand out.
Allow much sunlight as possible to release natural endorphins.
Try adding yellow to reference the sun and improve the mood of the space.
Colour selection is just as important in a kitchen as it is in any area of the home. When creating a colour scheme that is going to encourage positive and healthy minds, bodies, and practices, the inclusion of colours connected to nature is an immediate choice. Being surrounded by nature has an immediate calming effect on us. This comes not just from the physical elements of nature, but also the use of colours, textures, and patterns that remind us of nature.
You could add touches of green to deliver a mood that is full of health and vitality. Green is a colour with many positive benefits, and the hue plays a significant role in improving our overall well-being and actually encourages us to breathe more deeply, allowing more oxygen into our lungs and thus improving our focus and concentration. You can either paint a wall, use the colour in your tile selection, or simply add green in the form of objects or indoor plants. If possible, you could also try adding a planter just outside the kitchen window for the same result. Simply viewing green and nature will immediately improve your mood and lower blood pressure.
Adding green to a kitchen immediately alludes to nature and calms the psyche.
Another good colour choice for kitchens is to choose hues within the neutral realm. Neutrals such as whites, cream, or beige will create a calm and balanced environment. These tones are also a great base for a space where numerous additional objects and colours will be added. Neutrals are unobtrusive hues that create a base by blending in and allowing for the addition of more bold colours without visually crowding the area. Try adding some natural textures and materials such as woodgrain, granite, or marble finishes to evoke feelings of wellness. This is will encourage the mind to make healthier behavioural choices.
Natural textures and materials also allude to nature, thereby calming and improving our mood.
2. Reduce Visual Clutter
You can’t possibly have a clear mind when it’s clouded with visual clutter. Reducing the clutter will help you to think freely and leave room for a positive outlook that will in turn encourage a healthier outlook on life – including what you put into your body. Studies have shown that clutter in your home can encourage you to overeat or choose unhealthy options.
This is why it’s imperative to rid the kitchen of unnecessary clutter! Simply having a clear space can also reduce stress levels and lower blood pressure. You can do this by having a clear countertop that’s free of items that do not get used daily and keeping the area clean and tidy. Try to also introduce effective storage solutions for foodstuff and kitchen tools so that they can be efficiently stored, but also be within easy access when needed.
A cluttered kitchen will clutter the mind, leading to unhealthy habits.
A clutter-free kitchen with lots of storage behind a cupboard door encourages a free and open mind.
Organised storage will keep the kitchen tidy and allow for healthy options to be at hand.
3. Use Smart Appliances
The stress that comes with not having enough time to get everything done is a common modern-day complaint unfortunately – and kitchen appliances with SMART functions can help us to alleviate some of this stress. Programmable ovens and smaller appliances such as air fryers, slow cookers, multi-functional microwaves, and multi-cookers (such as Thermomix or The June Oven) are great assets in creating a healthy, efficient kitchen. A lot of appliances are now not only programmable, but also wifi-enabled when used with linked apps, allowing for healthy meals to be prepped and cooked automatically.
4. Adopt Healthy Habits
While not everyone can access SMART appliances or make big changes like painting their kitchen walls, everyone can adopt healthy habits to help them on their way to wellness! Simple things like having fruits and vegetables that are within eyeshot for a quick snack will promote healthy eating.
Furthermore, try to prep meals ahead of time so most of the hard work is done before the home gets busy. You could also try growing your own herbs in your kitchen. The AeroGarden, an in-home garden system, makes this easy with LED light technology. The smell and sight of fresh herbs will encourage feelings of wellness and motivate healthier eating habits.
