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It is difficult to completely control the indoor climate in an office. It can easily become too hot, too cold, too dry or too damp. And of course it is never be perfect for everyone: what one person finds too hot is too cold for someone else.

In addition printers, copiers, computer monitors, are just a few of the office equipment that affects the quality of the indoor climate. The potential consequences of poor air quality are well known: irritated eyes, headache, skin complaints and dry membranes in the nose and mouth. This is not only unpleasant, it is also unhealthy.

If you find you have a dry throat or burning eyes or even recurrent headaches, plants can help to improve your working environment all year round. In winter, the lack of moisture in the air can causes problems, especially when the heat is running full blast. Most people find a relative humidity of between 30% and 60% pleasant. But many offices do not even achieve the lower level of 30% in winter months. It is no fun indoors in the summer either. Sealed climate control systems with non-opening windows means that you cannot control the environment yourself. Even in offices with the latest climate control systems, more than a quarter of the staff are dissatisfied with the temperature or the humidity.

Yet you can easily improve the indoor climate with plants! Plants help create a healthier indoor climate and a happier workplace. Not only do they put water vapor back into the air, they also absorb heat and filter dust and harmful substances out of the air. Different plants have different effects - some purify and some humidify the air. Plants with a high level of water consumption can increase humidity by up to 15%.

The effect of plants in the workplace has been the subject of repeated scientific investigation. Time after time the conclusion is the same: plants work! One study looked at the effect of plants on the health of staff in the radiology department of a hospital. Once plants were placed in the department and artificial daylight was introduced, the level of health complaints amongst those studied fell noticeably. This resulted in a permanent reduction in absence due to illness from 15% to 5% within 6 months. The instances of additional complaints, such as fatigue, cough and headache were also reduced by a significant percentage.

The presence of plants not only affects the indoor climate, in addition, researchers have discovered that a view of greenery can result in a noticeable reduction in stress within five minutes. Again, research has indicated that people who spend more than four hours a day working at a computer monitor feel better and are more productive with plants in the workplace!