I know that indoor plants can help purify air, but I wanted to research if there are any plants that absorb radiation. I’ll share my findings with you here.
NASA did research with plants back in the day and they noticed that plants do absorb radiation. They were looking for plants that would help sustain life in outer space. So they were looking more for plants that can absorb one thing to produce more oxygen.
Dr. Bill Wolverton worked with NASA for 19 years to study plants that clean the air. He has since moved on and created air purifying planters. Although his research didn’t focus on radiation, his research firmly shows that plants can purify air.
Now with all that information, it doesn’t mean that you can have a few plants in your house and expect them to completely remove all the radiation and toxins from your room.
Dr. Wolverton says he thinks having 1 to 2 plants per 100 square feet should help reduce toxins. Plus, they’re nice to have so it’s still worth looking into keeping plants in your home.
I’ll be honest, there was a lot of back and forth between several different sites on how effective having the plants in your home is for protecting you from radiation. The good thing was no one disputes THAT plants absorb radiation, they just aren’t sure if it actually PROTECTS you from radiation.
I can understand that it might be hard to see that, but if they toxins from the air, you can also assume that they’re helping by absorbing the radiation before I do.
How Do Plants Help With Radiation?
The biggest way they can help is, yes you do want to put the plants between you and the devices that are emitting the radiation. That means if you have monitors on your desk, get a nice plant that will do well with sitting on your desk between you and the radiation. Since we know that emf exposure can be harmful, it’s good practice to add plants to your home for more protection.
And as some people have said, they aren’t the total solution. They can absorb radiation, but there will be a level if you hit it that they won’t be very useful. It will also likely harm the plants as well. But with most EML-EMF that we are exposed to daily, they can be beneficial for use to have in our homes.
EMF or electromagnetic frequency, can be classified into two radioactive categories
- Non-ionizing
- Ionizing.
The non-ionizing radiation type is defined as having low-mid frequency radiation and is known not to be of threat to anything, including human health, as it lacks potency.
The common examples of things that emit non-ionizing radiation are computers, mobile phones, wireless networks, microwave ovens, and power lines.
Ionizing radiation refers to radiation that possess mid-high frequency. It is this type of exposure that harms your health. It commonly comes in the form of ultraviolet rays, x-rays, and gamma rays.
Some speculate that the super low EMF radiation can be absorbed by plants and, is assumed, that if they are absorbing the radiation then they are protecting you from it.
You can read more about signs of EMF exposure is
Other Uses for Plants in the Home
Aside from helping with radiation absorption, having plants in the home is just great to make the house cozier. They also do well to help remove other toxins in the home. Not to mention that they give off great amounts of oxygen.
Overall, they just make things a little brighter and fresher for the home.
Here are some popular plants to choose from:
Areca Palm
Or the butterfly palm is a great houseplant that also removes toxins from the air. It’s also a great houseplant in the dryer areas since it puts out a larger amount of water vapor than most plants do.
In fact, this transpiration effect is what makes the plants great at removing toxins from the air. The more they transpire, the faster they pull air down to the root area and this pulls toxins down with it.
By Mokkie – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
Snake Plant
The snake plant is another easy to care for plant that does well inside. The snake plant is especially great to have in or around your bedroom because it gives off more oxygen at night than most plants do. This will do well to help you sleep better and get more oxygen in your room.
These are very easy to keep in your homes. If you go a few weeks without remembering to water them, they’ll still look good. But you might not want to do that. And if you want to create more, you can divide the plant at the root and it will propagate new plants.
These are slow growing plants, so they are super easy to grow in your home. Since they are slow growing, you also don’t have to worry about pruning them back either.
By Karl Thomas Moore – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
Bamboo Palm
This plant does well in indirect sun in your home and scored third on the list of abilities to remove toxins the fastest. It also likes moderately warm rooms, so anywhere that will get good afternoon sun will do well for it. These plants also like a little sandy soil and are really easy to care for.
The indoor plant can be susceptible to mealy bugs so you’ll want to take care that they don’t get infected. These plants do better with moist soil, but not wet so let them drain well and you’ll do fine.
They will reach for the sun, so you’ll want to turn the pot ever few months to let it get more rounded while growing.
By KENPEI – KENPEI’s photo, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
Rubber Plant (ficus robusta)
This is a great plant that is just hardy and resilient. If you’re like me, then it will be easy to keep it alive in your home. In the wild, it can grow super long, as long as 100 feet. Luckily, when growing it in the home, it will only grow as big as you let it. These plants like a lot of indirect light in your home.
Make sure you can set it near windows that let in a lot of light, but don’t let it get direct light on it. Their structures and colorings are just beautiful and each one will look vastly different from another.
These are the same plants that they will grow to make actual rubber with. The sap from the plant is what goes into making rubber that we use in everyday items like hoses, belts, matting, and flooring.
Boston Fern
You usually see these plants in a hanging pot. They love indirect sunlight so keeping them in a rooms with plenty of windows will be key. The other big thing for these is that they really like moisture.
Since most of our homes are dry, especially during the winter, you can spray mist them a couple times a week. My aunt use to take hers in the bathroom while she showered.
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By Homer Edward Price – Boston Fern
Uploaded by Amada44, CC BY 2.0, Link
Lady Palm
The lady palm is great for indoor plant because they grow slowly, so you don’t have to do much to maintain them. They require warmer temperatures and moist soil to thrive best.
Peace Lily
The peace lily is super adaptable to any home so it’s a great one to add to your plant protection team. During the spring, you’ll see the white blooms. These lovely blooms will last for a couple of months. If the plant is really well cared for, then you might even see a bloom in the fall with them.
These plants will only get up to about 24 inches so they’re great for the indoors. These plants require little light and are fine with rooms with no windows at all. They actually can burn in direct sun and you’ll notice that the leaves will turn brown if it gets too much sun.
You can tell when it needs water because the leaves will start to droop a little. This is a great indicator of when to water it.
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English Ivy
Like the peace lily and the rubber plant, the English ivy is one of few that has some varying color which makes this a popular plant to keep in your home. You’ll want to water it enough to keep the soil moist, but that’s about all you have to worry about for caring for it.
They are very good climbers and can easily take over an area if you’re not careful. This is why you’ll want to be careful with letting the plant grow outside your home. If it’s not maintained, then it can completely overtake an area quickly.
But as in a pot, in your home, it will do well to keep in your home.
By MurielBendel – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
Dwarf Date Palm
Also known as pygmy date palms, these are from the palm family and can get between 6 and 12 feet tall if you let them. As with most of the plants on this list, they prefer indirect sun. You’ll do best to keep them in bright rooms. They also like well drained pots with moist soil.
As they outgrow their pots, you’ll want to repot them every two to three years in larger pots that can handle their growth.
When they bloom, you’ll see little, yellow flowers that will turn into purplish dates.
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By Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us, Link
Conclusion
Although you’ll find a lot of people on either side of the aisle on if the plants protect you from radiation, they’re still worth looking at to have them in your home. For no other reason than to just enjoy some of nature in your home.
https://cordis.europa.eu/docs/results/272/272520/final1-nasa-phytoremediation-2012.pdf
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19930073077.pdf
http://www.wolvertonenvironmental.com/faq-air.html