Kitchen design affects stress levels: new study
The kitchen has long been considered the heart of a home, but new research has found that, just like any heart, it can cause high levels of stress if the workflow is blocked.
An experiment carried out recently by Australian stress psychologist, Lisa Walsh, has shown that a dysfunctional kitchen could impact our stress levels in everyday life.
Research showing that almost half of the Australian population feels stressed most of the time* prompted Ms Walsh and fittings manufacturer Blum to test how kitchen design and quality affects our well-being.
The test compared the stress experienced by My Kitchen Rules 2011 winners, Sydney sisters Sammy and Bella Jakubiak, during a cooking challenge in a typical Australian kitchen, versus a kitchen specially fitted out to optimise efficiency.
Sammy and Bella were tasked with cooking one of their favourite meals under exactly the same conditions, but in the two different kitchens.
They were given just 30 minutes to complete the meal and were measured for a range of psychological and physiological responses to stress, using heart rate monitoring, participant observation and a self-report inventory.
Upon analysis of the results, Ms Walsh concluded that Sammy and Bella experienced far less stress in the well-designed kitchen.
The sisters reported finding that the design and quality features of the two kitchens impacted how easily and quickly they completed the cooking challenges.
“We were running around the typical Aussie kitchen like headless chickens - we couldn’t find anything we were looking for!” Sammy explained.
“We were hunting around at the back of cupboards for pots and dropping stuff on the floor when we carried it from the sink to the stove.
“It was frustrating, and Bella definitely got annoyed with me making such a mess.”
Bella added that cooking in the Blum-designed kitchen was a much more relaxing and quiet experience.
“The layout of the kitchen made a lot more sense, and everything was so naturally organised and easy to find.
“My absolute favourite feature was the bin that you just gently tap with your foot, and it magically opens!
“We finished the challenge with a couple of minutes to spare, so the design definitely saved us time.”
Kylie Peterson, Marketing Manager at Blum, said that proper planning is the key to making sure your kitchen is a pleasant, rather than painful, place to cook.
“The secret to creating an efficient and relaxed space is getting the work flow right, by grouping items you use frequently in the correct area of the kitchen.
“For example, having your Corn Flakes, milk, bowls and spoons stored as close together as possible will make breakfast a more relaxing and enjoyable time of day.
“With kitchens lasting up to 17 years, it is also crucial to design a kitchen that will still meet your needs through changing life stages like pregnancy or getting older.
Ms Peterson concluded that possibly the most important and stress-reducing planning decision you make will be to optimise space so that you have enough storage and everything is easily accessible.
* Lifeline 2012 Stress Poll