Having a plant in your home may be a traditional interior decorating move, but plants actually provide more benefits than just adding color or a natural look in an urban space. Plants actually have a lot of health benefits as well. Check out just 5 of the benefits of having plants in your home.

1. Improve indoor air quality by detoxing from indoor air pollution and all the things you let into your home when you open the windows for “fresh” air. Plants take in carbon dioxide and exchange it for oxygen, providing you with a natural air purifier. Soil contains microorganisms that detoxify air as well, provided it isn’t too damp and moldy.

2. Better air quality can improve your mental clarity and alertness and plants have also been shown to lower stress and blood pressure. Other mental health benefits include reducing stress, anxiety, and depression while improving your well-being, sense of calm, optimism and sense of stability.

3. Just like planting trees and bushes around a property can help block street noise, indoor plants can similarly muffle sound. If you have a city apartment, consider plants around windows, balconies or other spots where outdoor noises can leak in.

4. Plants can prevent illnesses, including coughs, colds, sore throats and dry skin. Homes with plants tend to be more humid and may even help to prevent the viruses that cause flu.

5. Plants promote healing, which is probably why they’ve become a clichéd gift for hospital patients.

Some plants offer more health benefits than others and the Lung Institute recommends filling your home with different types of plants in each room. And if you’re allergic to plants, you may be able to reap some of the health benefits of plants simply by having a photo of greenery in your home.

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