Crucial To Our Health

Farm Fresh With Chef Phoebe

From time to time, it’s important to really dig in and get our hands dirty. When is the last time you ate a tomato right off the vine, pulled a carrot out of the soil and chomped down, or chewed on some fresh mint or basil plucked right off the plant? For most of us, the answer is not recently enough! According to the most recent research done by scientists at the Harvard Health Center, along with multiple articles recently published by The New York Times, Huffington Post, and more, going outside is crucial to our health. Learning outdoors through experiential education has been proven to increase our ability to retain information. When we are out in the sun and fresh air, our bodies thank us!

Working outside in a garden or on a farm is also crucially important to our kids! Having hands on experience with the fruits and veggies that later become our food has been proven to encourage healthy eating habits because we feel invested in the produce we’ve worked so hard to grow. This type of outdoor activity can also help kids’ understanding of math and science, while simultaneously engaging all five senses! Not to mention the benefit of learning some important values such as patience, responsibility, and organization.

Spring and Summer is the perfect time to start engaging in these outdoor and environmental activities. Why not take a trip to your local nursery and pick up some sprouts to plant around your house? Live in an apartment? No problem! There are plenty of plants that can grow on a sunny windowsill or balcony. And don’t forget to leave those gardening gloves inside and get your hands dirty!