Just 20 Minutes Of Cleaning Boosts Your Mental Health

London, England (AHN) - According to a new study, just 20 minutes of weekly housekeeping will improve a person's mental health.

University College of London researchers reviewed data from almost 20,000 men and women who were interviewed for the Scottish Health Survey about their state of mind and weekly physical activity. Out of these 20,000, over 3000 participants were known to be suffering from stress or anxiety.

The findings revealed that any form of daily physical activity such as housework, gardening and walking, lowered the risk of distress. Sports had the strongest effect, lowering risk by a full 33 percent.

The findings also revealed that just 20 minutes of physical activity can help boost your mental state. The more physical activity a person was engaged in, the lower the chance of psychological distress.

According to the authors, physical activity helped in restricting heart disease and cancers risk and also improved biological risk factors, including glucose intolerance and inflammation, which have themselves been linked to depression and dementia.

The study appears in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.