Did you know that exposure to wooden surfaces has been proven to reduce stress?
Havwoods International, a global engineered hardwood supplier, has introduced a new CEU presentation—Wood & Wellbeing (AIA)—that examines healthy building materials. Wood has a calming effect within an interior space that can be compared to a similar sense of rejuvenation when walking among trees in the outdoors.
Havwoods International, in collaboration with the University of British Columbia and FP Innovations (a Canadian forestry research and development organization), has established that the presence of visual wood surfaces lowers stress levels. The experiment took place in four office environments, featuring different amounts of wood and plants. Participants were asked to perform office tasks while having their heart rate and skin conductivity monitored regularly to measure stress activation.
The results concluded that stress was lower in the office environments which featured wood, indicating that using wood in an indoor environment can improve the physical and mental wellbeing of users. Apart from the pleasant feeling of calmness, reduced stress equates to higher levels of creativity and ability to memorize. Wood is also an excellent thermal insulator and can improve the acoustics of a space.