More than once you will have heard that sleeping in a room with plants nearby, especially if it is closed, is not good for your health. Obviously, if we look at the scientific reasons that explain everything, it all adds up: plants collect oxygen and release carbon dioxide at night, so if we find ourselves in a room without ventilation, the theory establishes that it would not be good for our health.
But is this reality true? Is it good or bad for health? Should we take the pot out of the room and take it somewhere else to sleep well? We are going to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of this practice to shed a little light on this dilemma that you have asked yourself so many times. And is not for less!
Disadvantages of sleeping with plants in the room
- Before starting with the advantages, let’s go straight to the cons that we find in sleeping with plants in the same room. The main one is none other than the one we have always heard: they take away our oxygen. The need for oxygen that plants have to survive is a reality, since they have to carry out photosynthesis and during the night they collect oxygen, thus expelling carbon dioxide.
- But what is photosynthesis? According to a thesis from the Faculty of Biological Sciences of the Completeness University of Madrid, it is a “physical-chemical process by which plants use energy from sunlight to synthesize organic compounds. The process involves the release of molecular oxygen and the use of atmospheric carbon dioxide for the synthesis of organic compounds.”
- That being said, it seems reasonable to think that the bigger and bushier these plants are, the more oxygen they will need. So, in this sense, we will have to take into account which and how big the plants in the room are so that it can really overwhelm you or you can worry about this fact.
- Another of the disadvantages that we can consider important is the amount of dust and allergens that can accumulate from having these plants in the room. If you are a person with allergies or prone to minimal sneezing, it is better if you do not have any plants in the room in which you will sleep.
Advantages of sleeping with plants in the room
- However, despite the disadvantages we have seen, there are many advocates of sleeping in the same room as plants. Let’s see the reasons:
- +They assure that the theory that oxygen can run out in one night is not true, unless you sleep with an entire jungle inside the room. A plant consumes much less oxygen than a person or a pet, so if you share a room with your partner or your dog and you don’t care, much less does a plant have to! Also, sleeping with the door or a crack in the window open is enough to prevent this from happening.
- +On the other hand, it can be affirmed that the mere presence of a living being in the room contributes to creating a positive attitude in everyday life and to relaxation, thus reducing ordinary stress levels. And this is not to mention the relaxation caused by watering and caring for them.
- +Another advantage that we can find is the regeneration of the air you breathe. During the day they carry out photosynthesis, so the process is the opposite of that at night: they absorb carbon dioxide from the air and expel oxygen. This makes the air we breathe purer and also regulates the environment in the room. Which does not exclude, of course, opening the windows to ventilate the room.
- It seems that, although it may have some disadvantage, the reality is that sleeping with a plant in the room is not as bad as we had heard. It is not harmful to health as long as we do not abuse the quantity and size of the plants and we take measures to ventilate the room and renew the air. The ideal? If we want to have plants in our bedroom, those with small pots and narrow leaves will be perfect, which will also prevent the accumulation of a large amount of dust.