Tropical Fish are good for your health, Fact, But, it may not be the first thing that springs to mind, it may even seem slightly unbelievable, but keeping tropical fish really can provide you with some substantial health benefits. Fish, I kid you not, are more than just pretty faces and fins! In fact, we have found and listed them below for you.
7 Health reasons why you should keep tropical fish and here they are:
- A Reduction In Stress
- Increasing Creativity And Productivity
- Helping Those With Alzheimer’s
- Lowering Blood Pressure And Decreasing Pain
- A Reduction In Anxiety
- Can Help Hyperactive Children
- Improves Sleep
Health benefits from aquariums, if you stop to think about it, are not such a big reach as you may think. After all, we as humans have an innate and natural connection to water, we need it to live.
From the water that we drink to the water used to grow our crops, it is essential to our survival.
Though fish keepers around the world enjoy the health benefits of keeping tropical fish every day, they may not realize they are doing so, nor know exactly what these benefits are.
So, for them and for you, who may or may not keep fish already, seven of the main health benefits are…………
Table of Contents
A Reduction In Stress
If you have spent any real time admiring fish in an aquarium, you will undoubtedly already have felt the benefits they offer regarding stress reduction.
Watching fish is therapeutic, hypnotic, and can be meditative. They grab your attention, move your mind from being busy, and install a sense of peace of calm.
The reason that fish have such a dramatic effect on our stress levels is all down to mother nature. The very presence of anything natural in our surroundings has an impact on our wellbeing.
Similar effects have also been found in listening to recordings such as ‘sounds of the rainforest’ and ‘hear the whales call.’
Increasing Creativity And Productivity
Observing tropical fish in their aquarium has been linked to both greater creativity and increased productivity. This is thought to be because the visual stimulation that fish provide can get your creative juices flowing making you, well simply, more creative.
From a productivity point of view, the therapeutic and stress level reducing abilities of fish help you focus more on being productive and increase your productivity levels.
Have you ever noticed how may aquariums are in offices and waiting rooms? They are known to relax and decrease stress in high pressured environments like the workplace, hospitals, and the dreaded dentist.
Helping Those With Alzheimer’s
A recent study by the Purdue University has shown that tropical fish aquariums in the homes where Alzheimer patients live or are cared for can be beneficial.
Results showed they can improve a patient’s mood, heighten alertness and appetite, and reduce aggressive behavior.
During the study, it was found that patients exposed to fish on a daily basis were less likely to behave aggressively and act irrationally. Rather, they would be calm, more alert throughout the day, and eat up to 21% more food than those without access to view an aquarium.
Lowering Blood Pressure And Decreasing Pain
Another study, but this time done at Plymouth University has discovered that gazing at a tropical fish aquarium can reduce your heart rate by up to an incredible 7%.
Great news for those who suffer from high blood pressure or high resting heart rates. Interestingly, without fish, just rocks and decor, the average heart rate decrease was 3%. Whilst with fish it increased to a mighty 7%.
Speaking of decreasing blood pressure, many people would welcome this when they have to visit the dentist and it shoots through the roof! Luckily, for them, the presence of an aquarium in a dental waiting room can do this as well as decreasing anxiety, stress, and even pain.
This is thought to be because whilst you are watching fish swimming around in their aquarium your focus is taken away from the surrounding environment. No longer do you notice the groans of other patients and the sound of the drill!
A Reduction In Anxiety
Being filled with anxiety can cause us to over analyze, over think, and be overwhelmed even by the smallest of things. It is a horrendous feeling to experience that often culminates in the thought that something bad is always going to happen.
Overcoming anxiety is not easy, there is no quick fix, and most people deal with it differently. However, many people have found that watching fish in an aquarium, whilst not a cure, can be beneficial.
This is due to an underwater world helping those suffering divert their attention, focus, and thoughts away from the unsettling thoughts in their head. It is a temporary distraction from all the cares that people may have.
It is believed that this ‘therapy’ works so well for anxiety due to that the aquarium demands your attention and allows you to lose yourself in a different world. The more time you spend in this ‘space’ the better you will adapt to being present in the moment, rather than your anxious thoughts.
Can Help Hyperactive Children
Hyperactive children can quite often feel stressed and anxious in their day-to-day lives. Watching fish in an aquarium, as with adults, can help children decrease these feelings.
This is as well as fish gazing being believed to reduce the actual hyperactivity, improve sleeping patterns, and raise curiosity and appreciation for the natural world.
Though not exactly health-related having a tropical aquarium can also be an excellent learning opportunity for children. It teaches them valuable skills such as caring for, feeding, and maintenance of a pet.
Since they are not as time-consuming as say a dog or cat, they are an excellent pet ownership place to start.
Improves Sleep
When you understand that admiring tropical fish in an aquarium can reduce stress and anxiety, it is easy to see that they could also be beneficial to getting a good night’s sleep.
They work, aquariums, in much the same way as white noise or the sound of rainfall does; it calms and relaxes you quicker.
Not everyone, however, is a fan of aquariums in the bedroom for various reasons. If that’s you, or your partner there is another option. Simply watch aquarium videos on your phone or laptop during times you have trouble falling asleep. Make sure that you turn down the brightness on your phone to do this as a bright light is not conducive to sleep.
Conclusion: 7 Health Reasons to keep tropical fish
At the end of the day (see what I did there, linking from sleep?) it doesn’t matter whether you have a tropical fish aquarium in your home, office, or bedroom; they all have surprising health benefits. It also doesn’t matter what size that aquarium is or what species you keep so long as you keep them. Aquariums, you see, are not just a hobby, they are a healthy way of life too!
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[author title=”About the Author”]
I have been working in the tropical fish industry for over 30 years now and I’m still learning. Everyday is a school day in this hobby. In my spare time I play golf very badly!